uncontrollable

English

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *né

Proto-Indo-European *n̥-

Proto-Germanic *un-

Proto-West Germanic *un-

Old English un-

Middle English un-

English un-

English control

Proto-Indo-European *-dʰlom

Proto-Italic *-ðlom

Proto-Italic *-ðlis

Latin -bilis

Latin -ābilis

Old French -ablebor.

Middle English -able

English -able

English controllable

English uncontrollable

From un- + controllable.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

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Adjective

uncontrollable (comparative more uncontrollable, superlative most uncontrollable)

1. Not able to be controlled, contained or governed.

   She got the uncontrollable urge for some chocolate.

   • 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “The Influence of the Dead”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 273:

     "Ethel!" exclaimed Norbourne, his strong and uncontrollable emotion betraying the power that her name still had over him: he tried to say something more, but the words died on his lips.

Derived terms

• uncontrollability
• uncontrollableness
• uncontrollably

Related terms

• control
• controllable

Translations

not able to be controlled, contained or governed

• Catalan: incontrolable
• Dutch: onbeheersbaar (nl)
• Finnish: hillitön (fi), kontrolloimaton, pitelemätön, hallitsematon (fi)
• French: incontrôlable (fr)
• Galician: incontrolable (gl), incontrolábel (gl)
• Georgian: არაკონტროლირებადი (araḳonṭrolirebadi)
• German: unkontrollierbar (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient Greek: ἄσχετος (áskhetos), ἀκατάσχετος (akatáskhetos)

• Hungarian: (literally) irányíthatatlan (hu), befolyásolhatatlan (hu), (figuratively) csillapíthatatlan (hu), fékezhetetlen (hu), féktelen (hu)
• Italian: incontrollabile (it)
• Manx: neusmaghtee
• Polish: niekontrolowany (pl)
• Portuguese: descontrolável (pt), incontrolável (pt)
• Romanian: incontrolabil, necontrolabil
• Russian: неуправля́емый (ru) (neupravljájemyj), неконтроли́руемый (ru) (nekontrolírujemyj)
• Spanish: incontrolable (es)
• Swedish: okontrollerbar (sv)

References

• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin Eli Smith, editors (1895–1910), “uncontrollable”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
• “uncontrollable”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.