untenable
(of an argument, thesis, strategy, etc.) incapable of being defended; indefensible: I do not regard atheism as an untenable stance toward the world.
(of a situation or condition) incapable of being sustained or maintained over time: A number of exporters have called for the measure to be withdrawn, maintaining it has imposed an untenable strain on their working capital.
not fit to be occupied, as an apartment, house, etc.
Origin of untenable
1Other words for untenable
Other words from untenable
- un·ten·a·bil·i·ty [uhn-ten-uh-bil-i-tee], /ʌnˌtɛn əˈbɪl ɪ ti/, un·ten·a·ble·ness, noun
Words Nearby untenable
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use untenable in a sentence
Climate change, which exacerbates these risks, seems to have finally tipped the balance of what was an increasingly untenable situation, says Anthony LeRoy Westerling, who is also at UC Merced.
Suppressing fires has failed. Here’s what California needs to do instead. | James Temple | September 17, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewThis summer has seen more fires, more heat, more storms — all of it making life increasingly untenable in larger areas of the nation.
Climate Change Will Force a New American Migration | by Abrahm Lustgarten, photography by Meridith Kohut | September 15, 2020 | ProPublicaChrome made up most of DigiTrust’s cookie aggregation, making its future untenable.
‘Changing the pipes to run on a better currency’: Publishers’ first-party data strategies take shape | Lucinda Southern | August 11, 2020 | DigidayBloom even announced the result in a lecture, only to realize afterward that some of their shortcuts were untenable.
Landmark Math Proof Clears Hurdle in Top Erdős Conjecture | Erica Klarreich | August 3, 2020 | Quanta Magazine“I appreciate the issue getting attention because it’s just an untenable situation,” he said.
Businesses Say Border Patrol Is Seizing Legal Cannabis Between San Diego, Imperial | Jesse Marx and Maya Srikrishnan | June 29, 2020 | Voice of San Diego
He added that if the agreement eventually proves untenable, “we could walk any time.”
Is The Guardian Holding Back The New York Times’ Snowden Stories? | Lloyd Grove | October 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTDoes this hunk of glass make up for his untenable relationships?
And The Escort of The Year Is… Backstage at The Sex Oscars | Scott Bixby | March 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe enemy effected and exploited a breach on the left flank, rendering the friendly positions untenable.
Rocker Lenny Kravitz’s Namesake Receives Medal of Honor | Michael Daly | March 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut two failed wars and a massive national debt have made their ultra-expensive, ultra-bloody foreign policy vision untenable.
Why Doesn’t Anyone Care About the Rising U.S.-China Tension? | Peter Beinart | December 16, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTRebel-held territory in northern Syria has grown untenable for professional journalists and aid workers as well.
The popping of dry, scrubby timber warned us that our position would soon be untenable.
Raw Gold | Bertrand W. SinclairNow, in our judgment, both the positions successively taken up in the Majority Report are untenable.
English Poor Law Policy | Sidney WebbBut in the light of scientific discoveries and demonstrations, such a belief is unfounded and utterly untenable to-day.
Tyranny of God | Joseph LewisHence, although seriously inconvenienced, the French did not find their position untenable.
The Life of Nelson, Vol. I (of 2) | A. T. (Alfred Thayer) MahanFrom the square itself Beresford was forced by artillery fire to retreat, and the situation was soon seen to be untenable.
Argentina | W. A. Hirst
British Dictionary definitions for untenable
/ (ʌnˈtɛnəbəl) /
(of theories, propositions, etc) incapable of being maintained, defended, or vindicated
unable to be maintained against attack
rare (of a house, etc) unfit for occupation
Derived forms of untenable
- untenability or untenableness, noun
- untenably, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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