Meaning & use

intractable

adjective·Advanced

Difficult to manage, control, or solve; not easily resolved or dealt with.

See it in a sentence

The negotiators faced an intractable dispute that had lasted for over a decade.

Chronic pain can be intractable, resisting even the strongest available treatments.

A note on using this word

Intractable is often applied to problems, conflicts, or medical conditions that resist repeated attempts at resolution.

Words with a similar meaning

unmanageablestubbornunsolvable

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Words with an opposite meaning

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