unutterably means in an unutterable manner; inexpressibly; so bad or otherwise extreme that one cannot talk about it. It carries an Arena rating of 1437, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, unutterably ranks #654 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #1,014 of 17,131 for Scariest Words, #5,166 of 17,128 for Most Ponderous Words, #5,609 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books.
Why “unutterably” is a great word
To a degree or in a manner that cannot be spoken of or articulated, often because the subject is too profound, terrible, or sacred for words. From the prefix un- (meaning "not") + utterable (from utter, meaning "to speak" or "to express") + the adverbial suffix -ly. Unlike "indescribably," which suggests a mere failure of vocabulary, or "extremely," a bland intensifier of degree, unutterably implies a quality so absolute it imposes a vow of silence upon the speaker. It is the weight of a grief that closes the throat, the blinding glare of a truth too pure for language, or the vast, star-chilled silence between galaxies—the acknowledgment that some experiences reside where words are not merely inadequate but a desecration.
Etymology
From unutterable + -ly.
adv
- In an unutterable manner; inexpressibly; so bad or otherwise extreme that one cannot talk about it.e.g.“We both of us went on our knees, and, feeling unutterably sad, a whispered prayer went up from our lips as the poor fellow's soul flitted away to a happier and brighter world, and all was over.” — 1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 167:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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