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I want to tell a colleague of mine I'm doing something that will prevent her from getting "ununderstandable" errors. I have:

...so that you will not get unnecessary, [ununderstandable] errors.

After googling "ununderstandable", I see that there is no such word, but I'm still looking for something that sounds better.

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1  
Surely, that would be "Derstandable"! (j/k) – Kaz Dragon May 24 '11 at 17:06
1  
@KazDragon +Your joke was ununderstandable to many here. – Kris Oct 2 '12 at 8:27

10 Answers

up vote 41 down vote accepted

How about incomprehensible or unfathomable?

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Incomprehensible is the one. – Claudiu Oct 14 '10 at 20:17
1  
Incomprehensible is the first one that came to me as well. – Mr. Shiny and New 安宇 Oct 15 '10 at 15:17
2  
Incomprehensible is good, as so is the second, though it should be reserved for stronger cases. – Noldorin Jan 22 '11 at 20:38
up vote 13 down vote

I prefer unintelligible.

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up vote 12 down vote

Enigmatic, abstruse, obscure or cabalistic sound good to me.

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To be honest, I already sent the mail, but I'll definitely use "obscure" next time. Thanks a lot. – Oren A Oct 14 '10 at 15:24
up vote 10 down vote

...so that you will not get unnecessary cryptic error messages.

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cryptic is ununderstandable to many. – Kris Oct 2 '12 at 8:26
up vote 3 down vote

My recommendations are:

  • difficult-to-understand or impossible-to-understand
  • opaque
  • obtuse
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up vote 2 down vote

Inscrutable.

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up vote 0 down vote

How about hyphenation: non-understandable?

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up vote 0 down vote

I googled it, and here it is in the Urban Dictionary.

ununderstandable

un·un·der·stand·a·ble {uhn-uhn-der-stan-duh-buhl}

–adjective

incapable of being understood, failing to be understood correctly.

My Commentary:

I LOVE some of the answers. What a cool sight. The English language continues to evolve. Every year new grammar rules are created. To this board of Deciders I would suggest that if a word is google-able, then it should be able to be published. I guess it is ultimately the author's choice, depending on what is being writ. I am also of the kind of wordsmith [get-sic] that Likes to makeUp rules and Words.

"Being brain injured, the challenges we face are inexplicable, or at least, ununderstandable."

blog entry essay with "UNUNDERSTANDABLE"

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1  
Terms found only on Urban Dictionary are generally not acceptable in formal English writing. I could have down voted but you are new around here. And, I feel sorry about your brain injury. – Kris Oct 1 '12 at 11:05
Thank you! I still like the word ununderstandable even tho it might not actually be an official word. And, Thankyou for your kindness about my brain. – Rodleen Getsic Oct 3 '12 at 2:41
up vote -1 down vote

Misunderstandable?

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3  
different meaning: "can be misunderstood" isn't "can't be understood". – TimLymington May 18 '11 at 20:32
While this link may answer the question, it is better to include the essential parts of the answer here and provide the link for reference. Link-only answers can become invalid if the linked page changes. – tchrist Aug 19 '12 at 4:38
up vote -1 down vote

The word ununderstandble is noted in Wiktionary though!

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I personally never cite Wiktionary because there are huge gaps in their scholarship. You can't conclude anything from the existence of this entry. A good starting point for reputable references is OneLook.com (but it also links to some unreliable references such as Urban Dictionary). – MετάEd Mar 25 at 23:48

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