1
as in hopeless
not capable of being cured or reformed
unfortunately, he was destined to live out his days as an irrecoverable alcoholic
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in irreversible
not capable of being repaired, regained, or undone
one computer file proved to be irrecoverable after the crash
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of irrecoverable
During the Kursk operation, the enemy has already lost over 38,000 soldiers in this single direction alone, with approximately 15,000 of them irrecoverable losses.
—
Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 7 Jan. 2025
This kind of situation occurs when irrecoverable past investments drive decisions, even when those costs are irrelevant to future outcomes.
—Shanna Apitz, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024
The damage done by Biden-Harris is not irrecoverable.
—Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 1 Nov. 2024
In Germany, bad debt relief requires that the debt is considered irrecoverable, assessed based on the individual facts of each case.
—Aleksandra Bal, Forbes, 8 Sep. 2024
The resulting jet of propellant that vented into space acted as an impromptu rocket that could have pushed the spacecraft into an irrecoverable tumble.
—Michael Greshko, Scientific American, 19 Jan. 2024
The West in fact faces a crucial choice right now: support Ukraine so that its leaders can defend their territory and prepare for a 2025 offensive or cede an irrecoverable advantage to Russia.
—Jack Watling, Foreign Affairs, 3 Jan. 2024
Two of these horses were euthanized on the day of the Derby itself after suffering irrecoverable injuries, their trainers told The Associated Press.
—Justin Klawans, The Week, 9 May 2023
One line of thinking is that Russian forces would execute a swift, overwhelming strike meant to inflict massive and irrecoverable losses on the Ukrainian military that would spur a political capitulation (and possibly a change in government) in Kyiv.
—Nolan Peterson, WSJ, 20 Jan. 2022
Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 7 Jan. 2025
This kind of situation occurs when irrecoverable past investments drive decisions, even when those costs are irrelevant to future outcomes.
—Shanna Apitz, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024
The damage done by Biden-Harris is not irrecoverable.
—Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 1 Nov. 2024
In Germany, bad debt relief requires that the debt is considered irrecoverable, assessed based on the individual facts of each case.
—Aleksandra Bal, Forbes, 8 Sep. 2024
The resulting jet of propellant that vented into space acted as an impromptu rocket that could have pushed the spacecraft into an irrecoverable tumble.
—Michael Greshko, Scientific American, 19 Jan. 2024
The West in fact faces a crucial choice right now: support Ukraine so that its leaders can defend their territory and prepare for a 2025 offensive or cede an irrecoverable advantage to Russia.
—Jack Watling, Foreign Affairs, 3 Jan. 2024
Two of these horses were euthanized on the day of the Derby itself after suffering irrecoverable injuries, their trainers told The Associated Press.
—Justin Klawans, The Week, 9 May 2023
One line of thinking is that Russian forces would execute a swift, overwhelming strike meant to inflict massive and irrecoverable losses on the Ukrainian military that would spur a political capitulation (and possibly a change in government) in Kyiv.
—Nolan Peterson, WSJ, 20 Jan. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irrecoverable
Adjective
-
Democracy in the United States faces a serious threat, but the case is not hopeless.—
Laura Gamboa,
Foreign Affairs,
31 Mar. 2025
-
Despite running on dirt-minded tires that are hopeless on snow and ice, these ultra-luxe restomods had no problem roaring through the powder covering the ground.—
Tim Stevens,
Robb Report,
12 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The Japanese Foreign Ministry warned that the country has until about 2030 before the trend is irreversible.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Apr. 2025
-
More important, economists say, the rise of free trade may be irreversible, its benefits so powerful that the rest of the world finds a way to keep the system going, even without its central player.—
Mark Landler,
New York Times,
6 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Lawmakers warn that evidence critical to future war crimes investigations may be irretrievable.—
Josh Hammer,
Newsweek,
20 Mar. 2025
-
And there was data that was lost, that was irretrievable.—
Wesley Stenzel,
EW.com,
2 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The groups also noted that the delay in funding could cause irreparable harm to the awardees, leading to the organizations going out of business.—
Callie Patteson,
The Washington Examiner,
7 Apr. 2025
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Legal experts said the crush of cases and their urgency resulted from Trump’s record-setting pace of actions that 39 judges in 11 districts ruled unlawful and likely to cause irreparable harm to the people targeted.—
Bart Jansen,
USA Today,
5 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
But after bouts of food poisoning on her vacation, she was diagnosed with an incurable autoimmune disease.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
23 Mar. 2025
-
Wynn suffers from retinitis pigmentosa, an incurable eye disease.—
Alex Isenstadt,
Axios,
16 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
An older idea of Russia that has not yet been destroyed is taking revenge on new, innocent generations who are sacrificing their lives in pursuit of unrecoverable greatness.—
Andrei Kolesnikov,
Foreign Affairs,
23 Jan. 2025
-
The damaged flight data recorder had been deemed unrecoverable for data extraction by South Korean authorities, who sent it to the United States for analysis at the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board laboratory.—
Paolo Confino,
Fortune Asia,
11 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Irrecoverable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irrecoverable. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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