Meaning & use
non-controllable
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Meaning
adjectivenot comparableformaltechnical
Not able to be controlled or influenced by someone.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after a linking verb: a non-controllable factor; the risk is non-controllable.
Patterns
- a non-controllable factor
- be non-controllable
The report separates controllable costs from non-controllable ones.
For managers, a non-controllable event like a sudden rise in fuel prices is frustrating.
In this model, some variables are treated as non-controllable.
Common combinations
- non-controllable factor
- Weather is a non-controllable factor in farming.
- non-controllable cost
- Rent is a non-controllable cost for a small shop.
- non-controllable risk
- Investors should accept that some risk is non-controllable.
Synonyms and how they differ
- uncontrollable
- Uncontrollable usually describes something wild or emotional that cannot be restrained, like uncontrollable laughter, while non-controllable is a neutral technical word for things outside your control.
- unmanageable
- Unmanageable suggests something is too difficult to handle, often because it is large or chaotic; non-controllable simply means you have no power over it.
Opposites
Word family
- controllable adjective
- Able to be controlled.
- control verb
- To direct or manage something.
- controller noun
- A person or device that controls something.
Commonly confused: non-controllable or uncontrollable?
non-controllable vs uncontrollable
Uncontrollable means impossible to stop or restrain, often used of feelings or behavior. Non-controllable is more neutral and technical, meaning not within someone's power to control.
Practice
In the budget meeting, the manager said that exchange rates were a ______ factor.
Choose one answer.
Non-controllable fits because the manager means the company cannot control exchange rates. Controllable is the opposite, uncontrollable suggests wild or chaotic behavior, and controlling describes a person who wants to control others.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “non-controllable”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.