Unthinkable Meaning
/ʌnˈθɪŋkəbəl/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjThat cannot be believed.
adjInconceivable or unimaginable; extremely improbable in a way that goes against common sense.
Sentence Examples
It was next to unthinkable that the boy would steal.
Productive thinking and creativity are unthinkable without imagination.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
It was ____ for them to betray their friend after years of loyalty.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
In the past, the idea of traveling into space was ____, but now it has become a reality.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- Proto-West Germanic *þankijan Old English þenċan Middle English thinken English think Proto-Indo-European *-dʰlom Proto-Indo-European *-dʰlis Proto-Italic *-ðlis Latin -bilis Latin -ābilis Old French -ablebor. Middle English -able English -able English unthinkable From un- + think + -able.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"With 16 minutes left on the clock and the tension climbing through the roof, Trinh-Duc tried his luck with a penalty from just inside halfway only to push it wide, but the unthinkable now seemed a real possibility."
— 2011 October 23, Tom Fordyce, “2011 Rugby World Cup final: New Zealand 8-7 France”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 27 Nov 2021:
"The ruling also comes amid calls from an opposition party for a review of the royal insult law, which would have been unthinkable just a few years ago."
— 2021 November 10, Panarat Thepgumpanat, Chayut Setboonsarng, “Thai court rules students' royal reform call sought to overthrow monarchy”, in Reuters, Reuters, archived from the original on 26 Mar 2022, retrieved 10 Nov 2021:
"It reopened as St Pancras Renaissance Hotel London in the early part of this century, and it now seens unthinkable to demolish such a structure."
— 2023 August 23, Dr Joseph Brennan, “Check out Britain's famous station hotels: St Pancras”, in RAIL, number 990, page 61:
"I want you to know that P.A.C. will pay for a child psychiatrist to come in and testify on behalf of the child so that the homosexual father will not be able to have that little girl overnight and weekends to expose her to what is unthinkable."
— 1980 December 20, Von Carswell, quotee, “Still At It”, in Gay Community News, volume 8, number 22, page 2:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
It was ____ for them to betray their friend after years of loyalty.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
In the past, the idea of traveling into space was ____, but now it has become a reality.