impregnable
adjEtymology
From Late Middle English imprenable, impregnable (“impossible to capture, impregnable”), from Old French imprenable (modern French imprenable (“impregnable”)), from im- (a variant of in- (prefix meaning ‘not’) + prenable (“(military) of a building, position, etc.: takable”) (from prendre (“to take”) + -able (suffix meaning ‘creating an effect or influence’)). Prendre is derived from Latin prēndere, present active infinitive of prēndō, a variant of prehendō (“to catch, lay hold of; to grasp; to grab, snatch; to seize, take”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʰed- (“to find; to hold; to seize, take”). The intrusive g in the English word was modelled after words like deign and reign.
- derived from prēndere
- derived from imprenable
- inherited from imprenable
Definitions
Of a fortress or other fortified place
Of a fortress or other fortified place: able to withstand all attacks; impenetrable, inconquerable, unvanquishable.
- Jurgis got up, wild with rage; but the door was shut and the great castle was dark and impregnable.
Too strong to be defeated or overcome
Too strong to be defeated or overcome; invincible.
Capable of being impregnated
Capable of being impregnated; impregnatable.
- The reproductive strategies of troop members, especially those of impregnable females, are suggested to influence patterns of range use.
The neighborhood
Derived
Vish — recursive loop
A definitional loop anchored at impregnable. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.
A definitional loop anchored at impregnable. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.
8 hops · closes at impregnable
curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA