as in mysterious
impossible to understand
advanced scientific theories of ungraspable complexity for the layperson
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Recent Examples of ungraspable
Paul’s attachments are ungraspable, transient, and forever underwritten by raw desire.
—
Vlada Gelman, TVLine, 27 Jan. 2025
Eraserhead was so ungraspable, so far into left field, that most critics dismissed it at the time.
—Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
One gazes into the geographical expanse of this place to try to grasp the ungraspable scale of things.
—Andrew Cockburn, Harper’s Magazine , 5 Jan. 2023
It’s a megagenre, something the poet-philosopher Timothy Morton might call a hyperobject, ungraspable in its ubiquity and scale.
—Virginia Heffernan, WIRED, 13 Dec. 2022
The scope of something inexpressible, a mammoth, ungraspable intimation, had overtaken him.
—Greg Jackson, The New Yorker, 22 Nov. 2021
The ecological relationships that Darwin brings to our attention tell us of a world of bonds much more complex and ungraspable than had ever previously been supposed.
—Longreads, 23 Mar. 2021
The Internet of Things is an ungraspable future, particularly when the fact of a future for Earth at all sometimes sounds implausible.
—Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 14 May 2020
The river itself was a standard-issue metaphor of time’s ungraspable flux and constancy.
—Wells Tower, Outside Online, 11 July 2018
Vlada Gelman, TVLine, 27 Jan. 2025
Eraserhead was so ungraspable, so far into left field, that most critics dismissed it at the time.
—Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
One gazes into the geographical expanse of this place to try to grasp the ungraspable scale of things.
—Andrew Cockburn, Harper’s Magazine , 5 Jan. 2023
It’s a megagenre, something the poet-philosopher Timothy Morton might call a hyperobject, ungraspable in its ubiquity and scale.
—Virginia Heffernan, WIRED, 13 Dec. 2022
The scope of something inexpressible, a mammoth, ungraspable intimation, had overtaken him.
—Greg Jackson, The New Yorker, 22 Nov. 2021
The ecological relationships that Darwin brings to our attention tell us of a world of bonds much more complex and ungraspable than had ever previously been supposed.
—Longreads, 23 Mar. 2021
The Internet of Things is an ungraspable future, particularly when the fact of a future for Earth at all sometimes sounds implausible.
—Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 14 May 2020
The river itself was a standard-issue metaphor of time’s ungraspable flux and constancy.
—Wells Tower, Outside Online, 11 July 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ungraspable
Adjective
-
Researchers in northern Denmark have unearthed evidence of a mysterious circle of wooden posts dating back 4,000 years.—
Sonja Anderson,
Smithsonian Magazine,
4 Mar. 2025
-
The Scholars, out May 2 on Matador Records, features at least a dozen distinct characters, in settings that include a mysterious university and a clown school.—
Simon Vozick-Levinson,
Rolling Stone,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
In a twist that’s almost incomprehensible today, the Chinese government even officially adopted the US State Department’s method for reporting air quality.—
Zeyi Yang,
WIRED,
5 Mar. 2025
-
This defendant’s actions are incomprehensible, and he will be held accountable.—
Stepheny Price,
Fox News,
18 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
In this context, Roz’s sudden maternal reflexes are unfathomable.—
Armond White,
National Review,
26 Feb. 2025
-
Borneo introduced the world of Survivor to fans with the unfathomable presentation of 16 castaways roughing it on an island, forming alliances and blindsiding their way to $1 million.—
Skyler Trepel,
People.com,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The disruptions in flow call to mind the format of Be My Guest With Ina Garten, in which Ina both preps for a guest as well as cooks with them, but Meghan’s uncanny flashbacks somehow further untether the show from the reality of her not-kitchen.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
7 Mar. 2025
-
Reality Blues wades into the mysteries of our uncanny world, trying to catch a vibe.—
Meaghan Garvey,
Pitchfork,
6 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The sometimes unintelligible lyrics roll out over spare acoustic guitar in what sounds like an unfinished demo.—
Gil Kaufman,
Billboard,
16 Jan. 2025
-
From lobbing slow-motion, underhanded softballs of no public interest to failing to seek clarification for unintelligible tirades to ignoring or allowing falsehoods and blatant political spin, the interview serves less as a public service and more as a reminder of ...—
Becket Adams,
National Review,
12 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Test Your Defenses Regularly No system is impenetrable, which is why continuous testing is essential.—
Julio Fort,
Forbes,
3 Mar. 2025
-
If love is a conspiracy of two, impenetrable to outsiders, Iago finds a way to pierce through, seeding doubt about Desdemona in Othello.—
Maya Singer,
Vogue,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
But there are also more esoteric forums, such as r/rentnerzeigenaufdinge, the German-language subreddit that’s devoted to context-free photos of retirees pointing at random things.—
Adrienne LaFrance,
The Atlantic,
4 Mar. 2025
-
At the heart of Seminole County’s water trouble is the esoteric chemical solvent 1,4-dioxane.—
Kevin Spear,
Orlando Sentinel,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Everything feels absurd and animated by obscure cosmic forces.—
Willing Davidson,
The New Yorker,
23 Feb. 2025
-
After years in obscure so-so movies playing Chopin and Byron, and in some respectable Merchant Ivory ones, the surprise star of last year's Four Weddings and a Funeral and this year's Nine Months and The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill but Came Down a Mountain has lately been having a bad life.—
Candace Bushnell,
Vogue,
23 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ungraspable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ungraspable. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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