1
Core quality
Impossible to reverse, revoke, alter, or take back.
Example
Once certified, the transfer became irrevocable.
irrevocable
/ɪˈrevəkəbəl/ · ih-REV-uh-kuh-buladjective
Impossible to reverse, revoke, alter, or take back.
Use irrevocable to express this relationship precisely: impossible to reverse, revoke, alter, or take back.
What irrevocable Really Means
The word becomes easier to use when its closely related senses are separated and compared.
2
Attributive or predicative use
Use this adjective before a suitable noun or after a linking verb such as be or seem.
Example
The damage was serious but not necessarily irrevocable.
3
Analytical distinction
Choose it when this exact descriptive quality matters; a related word may overlap without conveying the same trait.
Example
The constitution made the appointment effectively irrevocable.
Use irrevocable Naturally
Notice how the surrounding noun or clause reveals the exact shade of meaning.
Once certified, the transfer became irrevocable.
The damage was serious but not necessarily irrevocable.
The constitution made the appointment effectively irrevocable.
Precision Matters
Irrevocable overlaps with several common words, but each carries a different emphasis.
irrevocable
vs.Means impossible to reverse, revoke, alter, or take back.
ineluctable
Means inescapable; inevitable.
irrevocable
vs.Means impossible to reverse, revoke, alter, or take back.
indelible
Means impossible to remove, forget, or erase.
irrevocable
vs.Means impossible to reverse, revoke, alter, or take back.
cease
Means stop happening or bring an activity, process, or condition to an end.
irrevocable
vs.Means impossible to reverse, revoke, alter, or take back.
preclude
Means to prevent something from happening or make it impossible.
Test irrevocable in Context
The action cannot be undone or reversed once completed.
1
The deletion would be ___, so the archive created several backups first.