Word
unutterable
Phoneticsun·ut·ter·able
US/ʌnˈʌtəɹəbəl/
UK/ʌnˈʌtəɹəbəl/
Definition
adj. too strong or extreme to be described in words. You use this to talk about feelings like deep sadness or great joy that are impossible to explain.
adj. too great, intense, or awful to be expressed or described in speech. Often used to modify abstract nouns related to emotion or suffering.
Examples
“She felt an unutterable sense of loss after the accident.”
“The survivors stood in unutterable silence as they looked at the ruins of their former homes.”
“The poet attempted to capture the unutterable beauty of the mountain range at dawn, though he admitted that language often fails to reach such heights.”
Examples
simple
“She felt an unutterable sense of loss after the accident.”
contextual
“The survivors stood in unutterable silence as they looked at the ruins of their former homes.”
complex
“The poet attempted to capture the unutterable beauty of the mountain range at dawn, though he admitted that language often fails to reach such heights.”
Usage
Typically used attributively before a noun; carries a literary or formal tone.
Real-World Examples
“Rich adds that “the liar leads a life of unutterable loneliness” – so, for that matter, does the dupe.” “When the decision overturning Terra Nullius eventually came, the judges referred to the policy as "the darkest aspect of (our) national history" and one that left "a legacy of unutterable shame".” “Terrible as the bombing of London was, it is absolutely nothing – nothing compared with this unutterable desolation.” “For almost as long as Mr Moi ruled Kenya, Nyayo House in Nairobi became an unutterable synonym for torture, terror and detention.” Etymology
From un- (prefix meaning ‘not’) + utterable.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Synonyms
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englishreference.com/q/unutterable