unrecognizable
Britishadjective
Explanation
Anything that's unrecognizable can't be identified, often because it has changed so much. If your brother's Halloween costume is so elaborate that you can't even tell it's him under all that makeup, he's unrecognizable. This adjective is often used for things that have been badly damaged: "After the hurricane's destruction, the town was unrecognizable." You can also use it in a more positive way: "Once my bike was repaired and painted it was completely unrecognizable!" Unrecognizable comes from the prefix un-, or "not," and the Latin recognoscere, "recall to mind or know again."
Vocabulary lists containing unrecognizable
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Unrecognizable: Meredith Gansner, a mental health professional who works with teenagers, doesn’t see anything of her patients in the storylines of Netflix’s bizarrely large number of shows about teenagers with psychiatric illnesses.
From Slate • Jun. 14, 2018
Unrecognizable, because the network lineups are suddenly full of reality competitions, Canadian imports, and sports.
From Slate • May 29, 2012
The Unrecognizable continued, with vivacity: "Do you know, George married Mary, after all?"
From A Tramp Abroad — Volume 04 by Twain, Mark
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
