ineffable.

1. Too great, subtle, or unusual to be expressed adequately in words.

2. Considered too sacred or otherwise forbidden to be uttered.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• ineffable joy
• ineffable beauty

On the page

Ineffable joy left her unable to answer the simple question.

The music suggested an ineffable beauty he could neither name nor forget.

Usage notes

Primary category: literary. Forms: Comparative more ineffable; superlative most ineffable where gradation is meaningful. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.