Definition

1. Noun:
   • The quality or state of being impossible to understand: "Unintelligibility" refers to the condition of speech, writing, or sound that is unclear, garbled, or impossible to comprehend.
   • Something that is incomprehensible: It can also refer to an instance or example of such unclear communication.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • The poor audio connection resulted in the complete unintelligibility of his message.
  • The document was filled with technical jargon, leading to its unintelligibility for the general public.
  • She complained about the unintelligibility of the doctor's handwritten notes.

Advanced Usage

• "Sheer/Total Unintelligibility": Used to emphasize a complete lack of clarity.
  • The recording was degraded to the point of sheer unintelligibility.
• "Mutual Unintelligibility": A linguistic term describing a situation where speakers of related languages or dialects cannot understand each other.
  • Despite their common origin, the two dialects have reached a state of mutual unintelligibility.

Variants and Related Words

• Unintelligible (adj): Not able to be understood.
  • The signal was weak and unintelligible.
• Intelligibility (n): The quality of being able to be understood (antonym).
  • The speaker's intelligibility was excellent despite the noisy room.

Synonyms

• Incoherence: Lack of logical connection or clarity.
• Incomprehensibility: The state of being impossible to understand.
• Indistinctness: Lack of clear outline or definition, especially in sound.

Antonyms

• Intelligibility: The quality of being clear enough to be understood.
• Clarity: The quality of being clear and easy to understand.
• Coherence: The quality of being logical, consistent, and understandable.

Noun

1. incomprehensibility as a consequence of being unintelligible
2. nonsense that is simply incoherent and unintelligible