1
as in hopeless
not capable of being cured or reformed
an irretrievable drug addict who had wasted a once-promising life
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in irreparable
not capable of being repaired, regained, or undone
this is just an irretrievable mess, so let's start all over again
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of irretrievable
No fault did not require blame allowing a divorce if one spouse claimed irreconcilable differences or irretrievable breakdown against the other.
—
Patricia Fersch, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
Lawmakers warn that evidence critical to future war crimes investigations may be irretrievable.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
And there was data that was lost, that was irretrievable.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 2 Jan. 2025
Lawmakers warn that evidence critical to future war crimes investigations may be irretrievable.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for irretrievable
Patricia Fersch, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
Lawmakers warn that evidence critical to future war crimes investigations may be irretrievable.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
And there was data that was lost, that was irretrievable.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 2 Jan. 2025
Lawmakers warn that evidence critical to future war crimes investigations may be irretrievable.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for irretrievable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irretrievable
Adjective
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In a time when the suffering and seemingly hopeless prospects of America’s poor are known to all who have eyes to see, the only fig leaf available to hide the obscenity of this bill is the old partisan charge of waste, fraud and abuse.—
Clarence Page,
Chicago Tribune,
6 July 2025
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Valentine, Texas, stamps 10,000+ love letters each year For more than three decades, the small-town Valentine Post Office — also known as the Love Station — has processed thousands of love letters from hopeless romantics around the world.—
Brandi D. Addison,
Austin American Statesman,
2 July 2025
Adjective
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Her illness has left her with irreparable dental damage—forcing her to spend thousands of dollars to restore her smile, a painful and permanent reminder of her eating disorder.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 July 2025
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The lawsuit alleges that the negligence of the waste management company led to Taylor’s death and caused irreparable harm to his family, according to the press release.—
Caelyn Pender,
Mercury News,
10 July 2025
Adjective
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Finally, after more than a month of agony, her allergist diagnosed her with chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) — an incurable condition marked by hives that last six weeks or longer, with no definitive cause or trigger.—
Diane Herbst,
People.com,
11 July 2025
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Due to the contagious nature of the incurable disease, when it's detected, standard practice is to humanely kill all affected and exposed poultry.—
Elizabeth B. Kim,
The Enquirer,
2 July 2025
Adjective
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The usual one that pops into people’s heads is that fire seems to be an irreversible invention.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
2 July 2025
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Socotra needs to implement similar protections before damage becomes irreversible, Van Damme said.—
Shane Farrell,
NBC news,
28 June 2025
Adjective
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Crestfallen fans have begun demanding refunds for hundreds of dollars in ticket purchases to defray irrecoverable travel and lodging costs.—
Jia H. Jung,
Mercury News,
11 July 2025
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Customs Duty, which is irrecoverable. Import VAT, which can be reclaimed, provided correct steps are taken.—
Robert Marchant,
Forbes.com,
14 May 2025
Adjective
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First, the private key can be lost and unrecoverable.—
Alexander S. Blume,
Forbes.com,
8 July 2025
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That drop felt like a gut punch to many, especially with ongoing news coverage framing current events as ominous, permanent or unrecoverable.—
Steve Booren,
Denver Post,
15 June 2025
Adjective
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Additionally, the court found that after considering several factors, the government failed to prove that Abrego Garcia poses an irremediable danger to the community.—
Greg Wehner , Bill Mears,
FOXNews.com,
23 June 2025
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Despite the incident, The Animal Haven reaffirmed its no-kill shelter status, and clarified that euthanasia in cases of irremediable canine aggression is in line with the Best Friends Animal Society's definition of no-kill.—
Raja Krishnamoorthi,
Newsweek,
13 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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They were joined by dozens of other performers across the rock ’n’ roll spectrum, from the hard-stomping Fleshtones to the incorrigible Supersuckers, to Tommy Stinson’s Bash & Pop, to the ageless Linda Gail Lewis — younger sister of music icon Jerry Lee Lewis.—
Jim Ruland,
Los Angeles Times,
14 May 2025
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Critics attack it the same way: the recent success of a provincial right-wing party led many to view Austria as a land of incorrigible neofascists, for which it was sanctioned by the EU.—
Paul Lendvai,
Foreign Affairs,
1 Mar. 2011
Cite this Entry
“Irretrievable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irretrievable. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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