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unbelievable

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Etymology

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From un- +‎ believable.[1]

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˌʌnbəˈliːvəbl̩/
  • Audio (US):(file)

Adjective

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unbelievable (comparative more unbelievable or (rare) unbelievabler, superlative most unbelievable or (rare) unbelievablest)

  1. (literally) Not to be believed.
    Synonyms: beyond belief, incredible, noncredible
    Antonyms: believable, credible
    • 1996, Colin Thompson, “Four Pigeons”, in Venus the Caterpillar and Further Wild Stories, London: Hodder Children’s Books, →ISBN, page 24:
      ‘Come on, girls,’ said Steve, ‘be honest, we won.’ / ‘Yeah,’ said Raymond, ‘we let you off because you’re girls.’ / ‘You’re unbelievable,’ said Liz. / ‘Well, if we’re unbelievable,’ said Steve, ‘then you’re unbelievabler.’
  2. (figuratively) Amazing, astonishing; so surprising that one is almost, or figuratively, unable to believe.
    Synonym: incredible
    The most unbelievable thing happened to me today!
    This restaurant makes unbelievable pizza!
    • 1932 February 6, Virginia Chumley, “Visits with Virginia”, in The Chattanooga News, volume XLIV, number 189, Chattanooga, Tenn., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 11, column 6:
      Whether you want the unbelievablest sheer of chiffon . . . or the most durable of service weight . . . I’ve concluded, after a round of looking, that these stores give you a real money’s worth!
    • 1967, New Society, volume 9, London, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 680, column 1:
      In other words—join the gpo and hear the world; have fun; talk to the wildest, craziest, simply unbelievablest people.
    • 2010 March 9, Emily Lakdawalla, “Unbelievably spectacular flight through Candor Chasma”, in The Planetary Society[1], Pasadena, Calif., archived from the original on 2020-08-06:
      The unbelievablest (to coin a word) thing about this animation is the fact that it is generated in real time, like a video game!
  3. Implausible or improbable.
    Synonyms: improbable, infeasible, unlikely
    Antonyms: feasible, likely, plausible, probable
    His excuse seems rather unbelievable.

Derived terms

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Translations

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References

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  1. ^ unbelievable, adj.”, in OED Online Paid subscription required, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.