WordLens

ineffable

1 of 1adjective
/ɪnˈɛfəbəl/
1

so intense that it cannot be adequately expressed in words

  • She was overwhelmed by ineffable gratitude when strangers rallied to her aid.
  • Standing atop the glacier, he felt an ineffable awe at the vastness of the ice fields.
  • The sunset painted the canyon walls in hues of orange and purple beyond any ineffable beauty he'd imagined.
  • In that silent cathedral, worshippers experienced an ineffable sense of peace.
  • The novel's final scene left readers with ineffable sorrow that no paragraph could fully convey.
Synonyms:
indescribableuntellableunspeakableindefinableunutterable
2

so sacred or forbidden that it must not or cannot be spoken aloud

  • sacred, taboo, or forbidden that it must not—or cannot—be spoken aloud
  • The ritual required the high priest to guard the ineffable word passed down through generations.
  • In the secret society, certain codes were deemed ineffable and never spoken aloud.
  • Legends whispered of an ineffable phrase that could summon storms.
  • She refused to reveal the ineffable password that protected the hidden chamber.
Synonyms:
unnameableunutterableunspeakable