untouchability

American  

[uhn-tuhch-uh-bil-i-tee] / ˌʌn tʌtʃ əˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

Hinduism.

1. the quality or condition of being an untouchable, ascribed in the Vedic tradition to persons of low caste or to persons excluded from the caste system.

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Etymology

Origin of untouchability

First recorded in 1920–25; untouch(able) + -ability

Example Sentences

In December, she wrote that the “assassins…feel that their reign of impunity and untouchability seems to be coming to an end.”

From Seattle Times • Jan. 29, 2024

And yet Ridley-Thomas shares with the former president an aura of untouchability, of being above the law.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 5, 2023

And besides, there’s a certain cachet in untouchability.

From Washington Post • Nov. 16, 2021

But they also counter Minimalism’s aloof untouchability, because they are meant to be walked on and must be, for the full Andre experience.

From New York Times • Nov. 26, 2015

We watch as Janine enters the roped-off enclosure, in her veil of untouchability, of bad luck.

From "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood