# irrelevance

/ˌɪˈɹɛɫəvəns/ (US) · /ɪɹˈɛlɪvəns/ (UK) · CEFR C1 · Noun

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/irrelevance
Updated: 2026-10-18

## Definition

lack of importance for what you are discussing or doing — something you can safely ignore.

For teachers: lack of pertinence or applicability to the matter at hand; failure to affect meaning, outcome, or decision.

## Examples

- His comments show complete irrelevance to our problem.
- The lawyer argued for the irrelevance of the old emails to the current contract dispute.
- What once seemed central to the debate faded into irrelevance as new evidence reshaped public understanding of the crisis.

## Usage notes

- Commonly appears in the pattern 'the irrelevance of X to Y'.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.