unsayable

British

/ ʌnˈseɪəbəl /

adjective

too insulting, indecent, etc, to be said

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

to express an opinion thought to be too controversial to mention

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

I don’t know whether to call that projection, unleashing the id or saying the unsayable — but it’s awesome T-shirt material, am I right?

From Salon • May 17, 2026

So what would insiders - both current and former - put on their list of issues that are still unsayable for this new government?

From BBC • Sep. 14, 2024

Norwegian playwright and author Jon Fosse wins the Nobel Prize in literature for his ‘innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable.’

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 6, 2023

Norwegian author and dramatist Jon Fosse won the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday "for his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable," the award-giving body said.

From Reuters • Oct. 5, 2023

But those words were unsayable, couldn’t find their way past my lips.

From "Hollow City" by Ransom Riggs

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023