1
as in rebellious
given to resisting authority or another's control
a handful of ungovernable students are disrupting the learning environment for everyone else
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in uncontrollable
given to resisting control or discipline by others
resigned to the fact that my cat is basically is an ungovernable beast with a will of his own
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ungovernable
In its editorial, Automotive News said Stellantis might be ungovernable but was certainly in need of a major overhaul.
—
Neil Winton, Forbes, 7 Dec. 2024
But even Jewish-Jewish coalitions have proved ungovernable.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 9 Sep. 2024
The many examples of personal incompetence in rich industrial democracies generated the thesis that such countries had become ungovernable.
—Harold James, Foreign Affairs, 20 Apr. 2021
Waymo’s lovable and ungovernable driverless taxis aren’t playing by the rules again in San Francisco.
—Ryan Erik King / Jalopnik, Quartz, 30 Apr. 2024
See All Example Sentences for ungovernable
Neil Winton, Forbes, 7 Dec. 2024
But even Jewish-Jewish coalitions have proved ungovernable.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 9 Sep. 2024
The many examples of personal incompetence in rich industrial democracies generated the thesis that such countries had become ungovernable.
—Harold James, Foreign Affairs, 20 Apr. 2021
Waymo’s lovable and ungovernable driverless taxis aren’t playing by the rules again in San Francisco.
—Ryan Erik King / Jalopnik, Quartz, 30 Apr. 2024
See All Example Sentences for ungovernable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ungovernable
Adjective
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On Wednesday, March 12, The Kardashians star was joined by her mother Kris Jenner for the latest episode of her Khloé in Wonderland podcast, where the two looked back at some of Khloé's rebellious childhood moments.—
Esther Kang,
People.com,
12 Mar. 2025
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Mickey, tasked with keeping her rebellious sister in line, never had the opportunity to be a kid.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
12 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Joking was her version of uncontrollable tears, but Dr. Fenton neither laughed nor pressed to see what was behind Lilian’s inane laughter.—
Yiyun Li,
The New Yorker,
9 Mar. 2025
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Separating benefits from employee health also allows businesses to escape uncontrollable, often double-digit, group plan renewals.—
Jack Hooper,
Forbes,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The attacks started this week after reports emerged that Assad loyalists had ambushed and killed members of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham – the rebel group that spearheaded the rebellion that ousted the former Syrian leader.—
Mostafa Salem,
CNN,
9 Mar. 2025
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The singer and the songwriter traversed the frontlines of the urban guerrilla war that had consumed the city of Homs by that point, with one half of the city overtaken by regime soldiers and the other half controlled by rebel groups.—
Jawad Rizkallah,
NPR,
5 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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National parks and forests lost essential personnel with many crews cut down to half, leaving critical tasks unmanageable.—
Dua Anjum,
Rolling Stone,
14 Mar. 2025
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Pompidou president Laurent Le Bon has rejected that idea as unmanageable.—
Devorah Lauter,
ARTnews.com,
11 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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After being yelled at, children often feel defiant, defensive, and disconnected from their parent.—
Daryl Austin,
Parents,
14 Mar. 2025
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Their bleeding champion — at the time a former and future president — raises a defiant fist.—
John Scott Lewinski,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Another type of hyperpigmentation that kojic acid can help with is melasma—a stubborn and hard-to-treat skin condition characterized by splotchy, brown or grayish patches.—
Jenna Ryu,
SELF,
4 Mar. 2025
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But four months after becoming the first Republican in two decades to win the popular vote, Trump faces a new reality of needing to tackle some of the most stubborn challenges awaiting any new president and deliver on his campaign promises to lower prices.—
CNN.com Wire Service,
The Mercury News,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Climate change will create intractable problems for some countries and open new opportunities for others, encouraging a race for territory.—
Michael Albertus,
Foreign Affairs,
4 Mar. 2025
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What’s more, Asian elephants are highly social, highly intelligent, and endangered, raising intractable ethical obstacles to experimenting on them.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
TIME,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The eight-episode Season 1 of The Franchise followed the crew of an unloved franchise movie fighting for their place in a savage and unruly cinematic universe.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
10 Mar. 2025
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But Mayhem is about using music as archeology to excavate unruly parts of one’s own identity.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
10 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ungovernable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ungovernable. Accessed 20 Mar. 2025.
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