inscrutable

in·scru·ta·ble

adj \in-ˈskrü-tə-bəl\

Definition of INSCRUTABLE

: not readily investigated, interpreted, or understood : mysterious <an inscrutable smile> <inscrutable motives>

— in·scru·ta·bil·i·ty \-ˌskrü-tə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun

— in·scru·ta·ble·ness \-ˈskrü-tə-bəl-nəs\ noun

— in·scru·ta·bly \-blē\ adverb

Examples of INSCRUTABLE

1. an inscrutable work of art
2. He was a quiet, inscrutable man.
3. Of all the myths that have grown up around Alan Greenspan, the most powerful is the idea that he's willfully inscrutable. —James Surowiecki, New Yorker, 22 Jan. 2001
4. That wily politicians might adopt Franklin's distinction between appearance and reality to become inscrutable confidence men did not seem to trouble him. —John H. Summers, Journal of American History, December 2000
5. Supersymmetry is a magic mirror, and everything in what we imagine to be the real world has its ghostly, inscrutable mirror image. —Ian Stewart, Prospect, September 2003

Origin of INSCRUTABLE

Middle English, from Late Latin inscrutabilis, from Latin in- + scrutari to search — more at scrutiny

First Known Use: 15th century

Related to INSCRUTABLE

Synonyms: arcane, cryptic, deep, enigmatic (also enigmatical), impenetrable, mysterious, mystic, occult, uncanny

Antonyms: accessible, clear, nonambiguous, obvious, plain, unambiguous, unequivocal

Related Words: dark, darkling, fuzzy, murky, obscure, shadowy, vague; ambiguous, equivocal; imponderable, incomprehensible, unfathomable, unintelligible, unsearchable; inexplicable, unaccountable, unexplainable; unanswerable, unknowable; metaphysical, mystical, numinous, supernatural; abstruse, esoteric, recondite; baffling, befuddling, bewildering, confounding, confusing, disorienting, mystifying, perplexing, puzzling

Near Antonyms: fathomable, intelligible, understandable; apparent, clear, evident, manifest, obvious, open-and-shut, palpable, patent, perspicuous, plain, straightforward, transparent, unambiguous, unequivocal, unmistakable

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Rhymes with INSCRUTABLE

commutable, computable, disputable, immutable, imputable, permutable, transmutable