unflappable means remaining composed and level-headed at all times; impossible to fluster; not becoming frustrated or irritated easily. It carries an Arena rating of 1848, earned across 62 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, unflappable ranks #204 of 42,762 for Qualifying, #425 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #1,737 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #2,410 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words.
unflappable is pronounced /ʌnˈflæpəbəl/.
Why “unflappable” is a great word
Remaining composed and level-headed at all times; impossible to fluster. From the English prefix un- ("not") + flap (v., British slang for "disturbance or tumult") + -able ("capable of"), first attested in 1957–1958 and notably applied to British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. Unlike imperturbable, which suggests a deep, philosophical imperviousness, or nonchalant, which implies a casual, sometimes indifferent unconcern, unflappable denotes a practical, steadfast reliability under pressure. It is the pilot's voice announcing turbulence without a tremor, the surgeon's hands continuing their work when the monitor blinks, the negotiator pouring tea while the room erupts—a victory of poise over panic, maintained not by nature but by will, the human equivalent of a well-weighted base.
Etymology
From un- + flap (“to upset, stir”) + -able.
adj
- Remaining composed and level-headed at all times; impossible to fluster; not becoming frustrated or irritated easily.e.g.“The whole thing looked remarkably like an implacable force meeting an unflappable object.” — 1959, The Economist, volume 190:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.