What does incorrigible mean?
Word: Incorrigible
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Incorrigible means so fixed in a bad habit or behaviour that the person cannot be corrected or changed; often used jokingly.
Synonyms: incurable, hardened, habitual
Word origin: Comes from a Latin word meaning that cannot be set right.
How do you spell incorrigible?
Syllables: in - cor - ri - gi - ble
Tricky part: The ending is ible, not able: incorrigable is the usual slip. The g is soft, so an i follows it.
Watch out for: incorrigable, incorregible
Memory tip: Picture a giraffe that keeps nibbling the school roses however often it is shooed away: an incorrigible giraffe. The soft g of giraffe is in incorrigible too.
Incorrigible in a sentence
Example 1: Our puppy is incorrigible: he chews a slipper every single day.
Example 2: Even at eighty, Nanaji remains an incorrigible prankster.
Example 3: The teacher sighed at the incorrigible chatter in the back row.
Fun Fact
Incorrigible is often used fondly rather than harshly: an incorrigible optimist is someone who stays hopeful no matter how bad things look.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Insert the correct letters to form a word:
inc_r_igible
a) a, r
b) u, r
c) o, r
d) o, e
Show answer
c) o, r. The word starts with in and then cor, followed by a second r: in-cor-ri-gi-ble.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the word in the sentence and choose it:
The class clown was so egbirroinicl that even the principal laughed at his excuses.
a) inedible
b) ineligible
c) incorrigible
d) incredible
Show answer
c) incorrigible. Incredible and inedible need a d, and ineligible needs a second l, so the letters make only incorrigible.
Word Connection
Choose the word closest in meaning to incorrigible as used in the sentence:
My cousin is an incorrigible latecomer and has missed the school bus three times this week.
a) punctual
b) reformed
c) quiet
d) hopeless
Show answer
d) hopeless. An incorrigible latecomer is a hopeless case who will never change; reformed means the very opposite.
Spell-o-Spell
Three words in the list are spelt correctly and one is misspelt. Choose the meaning of the misspelt word.
1. naughty 2. rebelious 3. mischievous 4. incorrigible
a) refusing to obey rules or people in charge
b) fond of playing tricks and causing mild trouble
c) too set in bad habits to be changed
d) badly behaved, usually said of children
Show answer
a) refusing to obey rules or people in charge. Rebelious is one l short: rebellious doubles the l, re-bel-li-ous.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. An incorrigible habit is one that ____.
a) is good for your health
b) is very hard to break
c) lasts only a day or two
d) everyone in class admires
Show answer
b) is very hard to break
2. Who is best described as incorrigible?
a) A teacher who checks homework each night
b) A doctor who treats every patient kindly
c) A girl who stops after a single warning
d) A boy who sneaks sweets after every warning
Show answer
d) A boy who sneaks sweets after every warning
