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Inscrutable

Adjective

IPA /ɪnˈskruːtəbl/

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Meaning in plain English

Difficult to understand or interpret, especially because someone’s expression, motives or intentions reveal little. An inscrutable face gives you few clues about what the person is thinking; it does not necessarily mean that the person is dishonest.

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Pronunciation

Inscrutable/ɪnˈskruːtəbl/

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  1. A face reveals little

  2. You cannot tell what they think

An inscrutable expression is difficult to interpret.

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  1. Her inscrutable expression gave us no clue whether she liked the surprise.
  2. The character’s motives remained inscrutable until the final chapter explained his decision.

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Her ________ expression gave us no clue whether she liked the surprise.
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Inscrutable — Difficult to understand or interpret, especially because someone’s expression, motives or intentions reveal little. An inscrutable face gives you few clues about what the person is thinking; it does not necessarily mean that the person is dishonest.

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Difficult to understand or interpret, especially because someone’s expression, motives or intentions reveal little. An inscrutable face gives you few clues about what the person is thinking; it does not necessarily mean that the person is dishonest.

Compare: Her inscrutable expression gave us no clue whether she liked the surprise.

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Word origin

From Late Latin inscrutabilis, connected with in- (“not”) and scrutari (“to search or examine”). The same Latin root is associated with scrutiny and scrutinise.

Did you know?

The adverb is inscrutably: “She smiled inscrutably.” The noun is inscrutability. Spell the adjective inscrutable, with -able, not inscrutible. Mysterious is a broad related word; inscrutable often focuses on the difficulty of reading an expression or understanding a motive. Try writing a sentence that explains what you cannot tell from someone’s face.

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Inscrutable

/ɪnˈskruːtəbl/ (Adjective)

“Use inscrutable with words such as expression, smile, face or motives. It describes something you find hard to interpret, not necessarily something that nobody could ever understand. Pronunciation guide: in-SKROO-tuh-buhl, with stress on SKROO.”

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