Meaning & use
inconceivable
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivecomparable
So unlikely or strange that the mind cannot picture it or accept it as true.
Grammar: Often used after a verb or with it: it is inconceivable that she would lie.
Patterns
- it is inconceivable that something
- inconceivable to someone
It is inconceivable that such a small team could build the whole bridge in a week.
To her, quitting before the finish was inconceivable.
A world without music is inconceivable to me.
adjectiveafter a verbinformalhumorous
Used loosely to react to something very surprising, as in the famous film line where it is said about events that are surprising but not truly impossible.
Grammar: Used as an exclamation or a short comment, often playfully.
Patterns
- Inconceivable!
"Inconceivable!" he joked when the cat ate the whole cake.
When the train arrived on time, my friend whispered, "Inconceivable."
The kids loved to shout "Inconceivable!" after the old movie.
Word forms
| comparative | more inconceivable |
|---|---|
| superlative | most inconceivable |
Common combinations
- almost inconceivable
- The size of the universe is almost inconceivable.
- simply inconceivable
- Leaving without saying goodbye was simply inconceivable.
- quite inconceivable
- It was quite inconceivable that they would refuse.
- inconceivable that
- It seems inconceivable that nobody noticed.
- inconceivable to me
- Such cruelty is inconceivable to me.
Synonyms and how they differ
- unthinkable
- Unthinkable often suggests something too shocking or awful to consider, while inconceivable simply means impossible to imagine.
- unimaginable
- Unimaginable is very close but can describe huge or intense things, as in unimaginable pain, which inconceivable does less often.
- incredible
- Incredible is used for the wonderful or hard to believe in a general way, but inconceivable is stronger and implies not even picturable.
- implausible
- Implausible means unlikely to be true, which is weaker than inconceivable.
Opposites
Word family
- conceive verb
- to form an idea in the mind
- conceivable adjective
- able to be imagined or thought possible
- inconceivably adverb
- in a way that cannot be imagined
- inconceivability noun
- the quality of being impossible to imagine
Commonly confused: inconceivable or impossible? inconceivable or inconsiderable?
inconceivable vs impossible
Impossible means it cannot happen, while inconceivable means you cannot even imagine it; something can be impossible yet easily imagined.
inconceivable vs inconsiderable
Inconsiderable means small or unimportant, which is a different meaning entirely.
Practice
Which sentence uses inconceivable correctly?
Choose one answer.
Inconceivable fits a statement about something impossible to imagine, usually with it is ... that. The other options misuse it as a verb or as a feeling.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “inconceivable”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.