imaginable

imaginable — adjective

1. Something that is imaginable can be pictured in your mind or thought of as possi

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

Something that is imaginable can be pictured in your mind or thought of as possibly existing — for example, the worst storm imaginable, or every imaginable topping for a pizza. The word is almost always used with 'every', 'any', 'all', or a superlative adjective to stress that a quality is as strong or complete as it can possibly be.

Example

Heloísa ordered the biggest bowl of soup imaginable, enough for three people.

superlative + noun + imaginable (postpositive)

Christopher used every imaginable spice in his kitchen to create the new dish.

every + imaginable + noun (prepositive)

Common collocations
  • superlative + imaginable (the finest imaginable)
  • every imaginable + noun (every imaginable colour)
  • any imaginable + noun (any imaginable risk)
  • all imaginable + noun (all imaginable resources)
  • noun + imaginable (the worst weather imaginable)
Synonyms
  • conceivable

    more formal; common in academic or logical contexts ('every conceivable outcome')

  • thinkable

    less common; very direct ('no thinkable excuse')

  • possible

    broader; covers anything that can exist or happen, not limited to what the mind can picture

Antonyms
  • unimaginable

    direct opposite; describes something too strange or extreme to picture mentally

  • inconceivable

    stronger, more formal negation; 'impossible to grasp mentally'

Grammar Patterns

the [superlative] + [noun] + imaginable

every/any/all + imaginable + [noun]

[noun] + imaginable

Usage Note

Almost always combined with 'every', 'any', 'all', or a superlative adjective ('the best', 'the worst', 'the most'). In plain positive statements ('an imaginable solution') the word sounds incomplete to native speakers. Postpositive placement (after the noun, e.g. 'the finest view imaginable') adds emphasis; prepositive placement (before the noun, e.g. 'every imaginable colour') suggests completeness or wide variety.

Common Mistakes

An imaginable result came from the test.
Every imaginable result came from the test.
Without 'every', 'any', 'all', or a superlative, 'imaginable' sounds unnatural in most sentences.
She drew an imaginable creature with wings.
She drew an imaginary creature with wings.
'imaginable' means 'possible to imagine', not 'existing only in the mind' (which is 'imaginary').

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All four words describe something that the mind can accept or picture, but they differ in context and strength. 'Imaginable' is almost always tied to a superlative or to 'every/any/all' — it sounds unnatural in a plain statement ('an imaginable result'). 'Conceivable' is more formal and suits logical or philosophical argument ('every conceivable angle was explored'). 'Thinkable' is less frequent and slightly more direct ('the worst thinkable outcome'), though it can sound literary. 'Possible' is the broadest of the four, covering factual likelihood rather than mental picturing. A concrete contrast: 'That was the worst possible day' (factually bad) vs. 'That was the worst imaginable day' (emotionally, in the speaker's mind, no day could be worse).

imaginable ↗conceivable ↗thinkablepossible ↗

Common collocations

Adverbs

Phrases

  • all imaginable
  • any imaginable
  • every imaginable
  • no imaginable
  • the best imaginable
  • the worst imaginable
  • the most [adj] imaginable

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Comes from Latin 'imaginabilis', meaning 'that can be pictured in the mind', formed from 'imaginari' ('to form a mental picture'), which in turn comes from 'imago' ('image, likeness'). The word entered English through French during the 1300s. The core meaning — 'within the range of what one can think of' — has remained stable, but over time the word became almost exclusively tied to superlatives and universal quantifiers ('every', 'all', 'any'), a pattern that was well established by the 1600s.