1
as in hopeless
not capable of being cured or reformed
unfortunately, he was destined to live out his days as an irrecoverable alcoholic
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in irreversible
not capable of being repaired, regained, or undone
one computer file proved to be irrecoverable after the crash
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of irrecoverable
During the Kursk operation, the enemy has already lost over 38,000 soldiers in this single direction alone, with approximately 15,000 of them irrecoverable losses.
—
Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 7 Jan. 2025
This kind of situation occurs when irrecoverable past investments drive decisions, even when those costs are irrelevant to future outcomes.
—Shanna Apitz, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024
The damage done by Biden-Harris is not irrecoverable.
—Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 1 Nov. 2024
In Germany, bad debt relief requires that the debt is considered irrecoverable, assessed based on the individual facts of each case.
—Aleksandra Bal, Forbes, 8 Sep. 2024
The resulting jet of propellant that vented into space acted as an impromptu rocket that could have pushed the spacecraft into an irrecoverable tumble.
—Michael Greshko, Scientific American, 19 Jan. 2024
The West in fact faces a crucial choice right now: support Ukraine so that its leaders can defend their territory and prepare for a 2025 offensive or cede an irrecoverable advantage to Russia.
—Jack Watling, Foreign Affairs, 3 Jan. 2024
Two of these horses were euthanized on the day of the Derby itself after suffering irrecoverable injuries, their trainers told The Associated Press.
—Justin Klawans, The Week, 9 May 2023
One line of thinking is that Russian forces would execute a swift, overwhelming strike meant to inflict massive and irrecoverable losses on the Ukrainian military that would spur a political capitulation (and possibly a change in government) in Kyiv.
—Nolan Peterson, WSJ, 20 Jan. 2022
Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 7 Jan. 2025
This kind of situation occurs when irrecoverable past investments drive decisions, even when those costs are irrelevant to future outcomes.
—Shanna Apitz, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024
The damage done by Biden-Harris is not irrecoverable.
—Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 1 Nov. 2024
In Germany, bad debt relief requires that the debt is considered irrecoverable, assessed based on the individual facts of each case.
—Aleksandra Bal, Forbes, 8 Sep. 2024
The resulting jet of propellant that vented into space acted as an impromptu rocket that could have pushed the spacecraft into an irrecoverable tumble.
—Michael Greshko, Scientific American, 19 Jan. 2024
The West in fact faces a crucial choice right now: support Ukraine so that its leaders can defend their territory and prepare for a 2025 offensive or cede an irrecoverable advantage to Russia.
—Jack Watling, Foreign Affairs, 3 Jan. 2024
Two of these horses were euthanized on the day of the Derby itself after suffering irrecoverable injuries, their trainers told The Associated Press.
—Justin Klawans, The Week, 9 May 2023
One line of thinking is that Russian forces would execute a swift, overwhelming strike meant to inflict massive and irrecoverable losses on the Ukrainian military that would spur a political capitulation (and possibly a change in government) in Kyiv.
—Nolan Peterson, WSJ, 20 Jan. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irrecoverable
Adjective
-
The dance begin and the people are hopeless, bumping into one another but totally enjoying the experience.—
Anthony DeMarco,
Forbes,
2 Mar. 2025
-
The 60-year-old actress — who has famously portrayed hopeless romantic Charlotte York on the SATC franchise since 1998 — got candid about her brief romance with Alec Baldwin on a recent episode of Rob Lowe's Literally!—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Moreover, damage to the donor area can be irreversible.—
Kyle J. Russell,
USA TODAY,
6 Mar. 2025
-
The disorder has long been considered irreversible.—
Alex Knapp,
Forbes,
5 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
And there was data that was lost, that was irretrievable.—
Wesley Stenzel,
EW.com,
2 Jan. 2025
-
Once deleted, users can also manually empty the trash folder, making those files and communications irretrievable and truly deleted from the online platform.—
Lars Daniel,
Forbes,
26 Sep. 2024
Adjective
-
Goldstein had to show, among other things, a substantial likelihood of success on the merits and a substantial threat of irreparable injury (meaning the kind of injury monetary damages can’t remedy).—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
28 Feb. 2025
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The ruling came in a challenge filed by several refugee resettlement organizations whose lawsuit earlier this month argued that President Donald Trump's indefinite suspension of the U.S. refugee program was unlawful and causing irreparable harm.—
Chris Kenning,
USA TODAY,
26 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
In the decade since she was diagnosed with an incurable brain disease, Joline Tingler has been in and out of a half dozen Orange County homeless shelters.—
CalMatters,
The Mercury News,
26 Feb. 2025
-
Harlow, born Chantelle Brown-Young, was diagnosed with vitiligo, an incurable skin pigmentation disease that causes colorless patches to develop on a person’s body, at the age of four.—
Jack Guy,
CNN,
19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
An older idea of Russia that has not yet been destroyed is taking revenge on new, innocent generations who are sacrificing their lives in pursuit of unrecoverable greatness.—
Andrei Kolesnikov,
Foreign Affairs,
23 Jan. 2025
-
The damaged flight data recorder had been deemed unrecoverable for data extraction by South Korean authorities, who sent it to the United States for analysis at the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board laboratory.—
Paolo Confino,
Fortune Asia,
11 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Irrecoverable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irrecoverable. Accessed 14 Mar. 2025.
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