ineffable

In a sentence

• The view from the ridge left him with an ineffable calm.
• She felt an ineffable joy when the letter finally arrived.
• Some grief is ineffable; friends sit with it instead of explaining it.

Origin

From Latin ineffabilis, from in- (not) and effari (to speak out).

History

Medieval and early modern writers used ineffable for sacred mysteries that speech could not hold. The sense widened to awe, grief and beauty that resist neat description. Poets still prefer it when ordinary adjectives feel blunt. It asks the reader to accept a limit on naming rather than to invent more labels.

Nearby words

indescribable · inexpressible · unutterable