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September 13, 2022
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| Word of the Week--"Inconceivable" |
Definition--Inconceivable- adj. unable to be imagined; unthinkable; incredible.
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| Discussion-- This has long been one of my favorite words ever since I saw the movie Princess Bride. In the movie there is a pirate that kidnaps a young lady and is then pursued by the damsel in distress' rescuer. The pirate continues to believe that he has lost the rescuer when the hero pops up again and again. With each new appearance of the rescuer, the pirate says "inconceivable." It's really quite funny if you haven't seen the movie. Trust me, it really is.
Inconceivable is an interesting word because of its implications. It means that something is so impossible that it can not even be imagined. However, is there really anything that can not be imagined? I would venture to say no, thus leading me to beleive that the word inconceivable and its counterparts (i.e. unimaginable, unthinkable, etc...) are really just figures of speech leaning toward hyperbole. It is inconceivable that I understand what I just wrote!
I tried to sit around thinking of some things that would be inconceivable, when I realized that there was a basic flaw in my logic. If I were to think of something that was inconceivable, then it would no longer be inconceivable, because I had conceived it. What a concept! My head hurts.
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| Etymology--Inconceivable- Formed from the prefix in-, (meaning not, opposite) + conceivable, which is from the Old French conceiven, which means to receive (seed) in the womb. The idea of conception being the generation of thought is first recorded in 1340.
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Foreign Translations
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| Dutch: |
ondenkbaar
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| French: |
inconcevable
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| German: |
unvorstellbar
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| Italian: |
inconcepibile
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| Spanish: |
inconcebible
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Jane Ellis
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