English Lexicon

Incommensurable

/ɪn.kəˈmɛn.sər.ə.bəl/
adjectiveCEFR C2 (Proficient)Top #14500 frequency
Full Thesaurus

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As adjective
  1. 1

    Not able to be judged by the same standard; having no common standard of measurement.

    "The cultural values of the two societies were so different as to be practically incommensurable."
  2. 2

    In mathematics, unable to be measured by a common standard; having no common unit of measure.

    "The side and the diagonal of a square are incommensurable quantities."

Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum

Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from the Late Latin word 'incommensurabilis', formed from the prefix 'in-' (meaning 'not') combined with 'commensurabilis' (meaning 'measurable together'). It entered the English language in the late 16th century, initially used in mathematical contexts regarding quantities lacking a common measure, before expanding into philosophical and general usage to describe things that cannot be compared.

Quick Vocabulary Retention Check

Which of the following is the closest synonym for "Incommensurable"?

Thesaurus & Synonyms Graph

Explore Nuanced Synonyms for "Incommensurable"

Discover exact matches, context-specific alternatives, and antonyms with intensity ratings in the VocabDictionary Thesaurus.

View "Incommensurable" Synonym Map