English → Latin
“incomprehensible” in Latin
immēnsusimmeasurable, boundless, endless, vast, immenseīnfīnītusboundless, unlimited, endless; infiniteimperfectusunfinished, incomplete; imperfect; imperfect
The English word incomprehensible itself goes back to Latin comprehendō, through incomprehēnsibilis.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
incomprehensible
non comprehensus: non perceptus. (The words are found in this connection and order.) non comprehensus et non perceptus: non comprehensus neque perceptus; or, by circumlocution, quod mente or cogitatione comprehendi non potest: quod comprehendi or percipi non potest (whatever is beyond the faculty of comprehension, ἀκατάληπτος. ☞ Avoid incomprehensibilis [Col., Plin.]. incomprehensus and imperfectus, which are never used by Cic.; Vid: Orelli and Goerenz, Cic., Acad., 2, 29, extr., where non comprehensa is the right reading): quod intelligi non potest: quod in intelligentiam non cadit: quod intelligentiae nostrae vim atque rationem fugit (what cannot be understood): quod cogitare non possumus: quod cogitari non potest: quod mens et cogitatio capere non potest (that can not be imagined): inexplicabilis (not to be explained; e.g., readiness to concede, facilitas): incredibilis (incredible; e.g., levitas animi). An incomprehensible degree of rapidity, celeritas tanta, quantam cogitare non possumus. To be incomprehensible, cogitatione comprehendi or percipi non posse; fugit aliquid intelligentiae nostrae vim ac notionem.
Not to be confined or contained by any limit, immensus: infinitus. Sen. uses (natura) incerta et incomprehensibilis.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for incomprehensible?
- The usual Latin words for “incomprehensible” are immēnsus, īnfīnītus, imperfectus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.