irreconcilable
UK[ɪˌrekənˈsaɪləbl]US[ɪˌrekənˈsaɪləbl]
adj
impossible to find agreement between or with; impossible to bring into harmony.
adj
impossible to make compatible with something else.
Morpheme Breakdown
ir
re
concile
able
ir
not
re
again
concile
bring together
able
capable of
Etymology
the word irreconcilable is built upon the latin verb conciliare, meaning "to bring together" or "to unite". the prefix re- intensifies this action to "bring together again," suggesting a restoration of harmony. the addition of the negative prefix in- (which assimilates to ir- before 'r') fundamentally reverses the meaning to "not capable of being brought together again." finally, the suffix -abilis (english -able) completes the adjective, forming a term that describes a state or condition where differences are so profound that agreement or harmony is fundamentally impossible to achieve.
Analysis
Structure: ir (not) + re (again) + concile (bring together) + able (capable of)
- ir: latin origin, a prefix meaning "not" or "without".
- re: latin origin, a prefix meaning "again" or "back".
- concile: from latin conciliare (to bring together, unite), a verb-forming element.
- able: latin origin, a suffix meaning "capable of" or "fit for".
Examples
their political views were so opposed that they found themselves irreconcilable.
the two theories are irreconcilable and cannot both be correct.
after the bitter argument, they reached an irreconcilable difference and parted ways.