unspeakable

/ʌnˈspiːkəbl/ (bre, ipa) · [ənspˈikəbəl] /ʌnˈspiːkəbl/ (ame, ipa) · [ənspˈikəbəl] /ˌən-ˈspē-kə-bəl How to pronounce unspeakable (audio)/ (ame, mw)

unspeakable — 形容詞

  • unspeakablepositive
  • more unspeakablecomparative
  • most unspeakablesuperlative

1. so shocking, cruel, or painful that people feel ordinary words cannot face it.

1.形容詞C1
釋義

慘不忍言的

慘烈或痛苦到幾乎說不出口的

so shocking, cruel, or painful that people feel ordinary words cannot face it.

例句

The report described unspeakable violence against children in the prison camp.

那份報告描述了監禁營裡針對兒童的慘不忍言暴行。

collocation: unspeakable violence / cruelty / suffering

After the flood, Kofi saw unspeakable damage in the riverside market.

洪水過後，Kofi 在河邊市場看見了慘不忍言的破壞。

同義詞
  • horrific

    focuses on how frightening or brutal something is

  • appalling

    stresses the shock or disgust it causes in other people

  • atrocious

    often used for cruel acts or offensively bad behaviour

  • unimaginable

    emphasises extreme scale, not the failure of language itself

文法句型

unspeakable + noun

be unspeakable

用法筆記

Usually used for extreme cruelty, loss, shame, or suffering, often before nouns such as 'violence', 'acts', 'grief', or 'horror'. Distinguish from sense 2: this sense stresses horror or pain, not beauty or joy beyond description.

常見錯誤

❌The picnic was unspeakable.
✅The picnic was unforgettable.
💡unspeakable usually points to horror, cruelty, or deep suffering, not to an enjoyable event.

2. so unusual, powerful, or emotionally deep that words do not seem enough to descr

2.形容詞C1
釋義

難以言喻的

強烈到言語難以充分表達的

so unusual, powerful, or emotionally deep that words do not seem enough to describe it.

例句

Élise felt unspeakable relief when the missing child was found safe.

失蹤的孩子平安找到時，Élise 感到難以言喻的寬慰。

collocation: unspeakable relief / joy / beauty

Standing alone on the cliff, Mateo watched the sea with unspeakable awe.

Mateo 獨自站在懸崖上看著大海，心中充滿難以言喻的敬畏。

同義詞
反義詞
  • describable

    can be put into ordinary words without difficulty

文法句型

unspeakable + abstract noun

be unspeakable

用法筆記

More literary than sense 1 and often used with nouns such as 'joy', 'relief', 'beauty', or 'peace'. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense points to intensity beyond description, not to moral shock or horror.

常見錯誤

❌The bus schedule was unspeakable.
✅The bus schedule was confusing.
💡this sense is for powerful feelings or experiences, not for everyday difficulty.