indispensable en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /ˌɪndɪˈspɛnsəbəl/ (Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
- /ˌɪndɪˈspensəbəl/ (Australia)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French indispensable, from Medieval Latin indispensābilis, corresponding to in- + dispensable.
Meanings
-
Absolutely necessary or requisite; that one cannot do without.
In this paper, I have chosen Khotan, a small oasis-state on the southern edge of the Taklamakan Desert, as the subject for the investigation of this question. The waters of two rivers, the Yurungkash or Baiyu he 白玉河 (White Jade River) and the Karakash or Heiyu he 黑玉河 (Black Jade River), were indispensable for establishing human culture in Khotan.
2021, Imre Hamar, “Khotan and the Buddhāvataṃsaka-sūtra”, in Takami Inoue, Imre Hamar, editors, The Buddha’s Words and Their Interpretations, Shin Buddhist Comprehensive Research Institute, →ISBN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 24 Oct 2021, page 130:But through the oligopoly, charcoal fuel proliferated throughout London's trades and industries. By the 1200s, brewers and bakers, tilemakers, glassblowers, pottery producers, and a range of other craftsmen all became hour-to-hour consumers of charcoal. This only magnified the indispensable nature of the oligopolists.
2006, Edwin Black, chapter 2, in Internal Combustion:Behind this carefully crafted strategy of wooing Trump is a desire from Gulf states to solidify and formalize their positions as the US’ indispensable security and economic partners, and extract as much benefit for themselves as they can.
2025 May 11, Nadeen Ebrahim and Abbas Al Lawati, “Trump is visiting three of the world’s richest nations. Here’s what’s on their wish list”, in CNN:And my friends in politics, no-one is remotely indispensable and our brilliant and Darwinian system will produce another leader, equally committed to taking this country forward through tough times.
2022 July 7, Boris Johnson, resignation speech:An indispensable component of a heart-healthy diet.
-
(of duties, qualifier:rules etc.) Unbendable, that cannot be set aside or ignored.
The law was moral and indispensable.
1679–1715, Gilbert Burnet, “(please specify the page)”, in The History of the Reformation of the Church of England., London: […] T[homas] H[odgkin] for Richard Chiswell, […]:Why is marking a book indispensable to reading it? First, it keeps you awake—not merely conscious, but wide awake.
1972, Mortimer J. Adler, Charles Van Doren, How to Read a Book, →ISBN, →LCCN, page 49:
- (obsolete) Not admitting ecclesiastical dispensation; not subject to release or exemption; that cannot be allowed by bending the canonical rules.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| most indispensable | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more indispensable | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic |
Antonyms
Deriveds
indispensableness · indispensable nation · indispensably · indispensability
Translations (98)
bn অতি জরুরি (not dispensable) · ru необходи́мый (not dispensable) · bg необходим (absolutely necessary) · pt imprescindível (absolutely necessary) · th ขาดไม่ได้ (absolutely necessary) · nl onontbeerlijk (absolutely necessary) · ru необходи́мый (absolutely necessary) · fr indispensable (not dispensable) · gl imprescindíbel (absolutely necessary) · is ómissandi (absolutely necessary) · cs nepostradatelný (not subject to exemption) · sv oumbärlig (absolutely necessary) · hi अपरिहार्य (not dispensable) · sv omistlig (not dispensable) · pl niezbędny (not dispensable) · am አስፈላጊ (absolutely necessary) · gl imprescindíbel (not dispensable) · bn অতি জরুরি (absolutely necessary) · hu elmaradhatatlan (not dispensable) · pt indispensável (absolutely necessary) · gl indispensábel (not dispensable) · fi välttämätön (absolutely necessary) · es imprescindible (absolutely necessary) · es indispensable (not subject to exemption) · ast indispensable (not dispensable) · eo nemalhavebla (not dispensable) · hu kihagyhatatlan (not dispensable) · sh neophodan (not subject to exemption) · es indispensable (not dispensable) · it indispensabile (not dispensable) · el αναντικατάστατος (absolutely necessary) · sk nepostrádateľný (not dispensable) · pl nieodzowny (not dispensable) · nn uunnverleg (absolutely necessary) · fi korvaamaton (not dispensable) · hi अपरिहार्य (absolutely necessary) · hu nélkülözhetetlen (absolutely necessary) · ro indispensabil (not dispensable) · tr istisnasız (not subject to exemption) · cmn 必要的 (absolutely necessary) · gl indispensable (not dispensable) · ga riachtanach (absolutely necessary) · pt indispensável (not dispensable) · es indefectible (absolutely necessary) · tr muafiyetsiz (not subject to exemption) · uk обов'язко́вий (absolutely necessary) · ka აუცილებელი (not dispensable) · fi olennainen (absolutely necessary) · fi välttämätön (not dispensable) · ru незамени́мый (not dispensable) · pt indispensável (not subject to exemption) · nl onmisbaar (not subject to exemption) · ca indispensable (absolutely necessary) · ro indispensabil (not subject to exemption) · sk neodmysliteľný (absolutely necessary) · sv oundgänglig (not dispensable) · bn অতি গুরুত্বপূর্ণ (absolutely necessary) · bn অতি গুরুত্বপূর্ণ (not dispensable) · tr elzem (absolutely necessary) · nb unntaksløs (not subject to exemption) · de unverzichtbar (not dispensable) · nb uunnværlig (absolutely necessary) · uk необхі́дний (not dispensable) · sv oumbärlig (not dispensable) · fi ehdoton (not subject to exemption) · be неабхо́дны (not dispensable) · ca indispensable (not dispensable) · sk nutné (absolutely necessary) · sk nevyhnutne potrebné (absolutely necessary) · bn অতি প্রয়োজনীয় (not dispensable) · nb uten unntak (not subject to exemption) · gl imprescindible (not dispensable) · bg недопускащ изключения (not subject to exemption) · gl indispensábel (not subject to exemption) · hu nélkülözhetetlen (not dispensable) · bn অত্যাবশ্যক (absolutely necessary) · nn utan unnatak (not subject to exemption) · ia indispensabile (not dispensable) · be абавязко́вы (absolutely necessary) · uk незамі́нний (not dispensable) · cmn 必不可少的 (not subject to exemption) · de ausnahmlos (not subject to exemption) · nl onmisbaar (not dispensable) · ru непрело́жный (absolutely necessary) · ru обяза́тельный (absolutely necessary) · de unentbehrlich (absolutely necessary) · tr zaruri (absolutely necessary) · hu elengedhetetlen (not dispensable) · fr indispensable (absolutely necessary) · bn অত্যাবশ্যক (not dispensable) · gl indispensábel (absolutely necessary) · ru неотъе́млемый (not subject to exemption) · de grundsätzlich (not subject to exemption) · nb unntakslaus (not subject to exemption) · es indispensable (absolutely necessary) · bn অতি প্রয়োজনীয় (absolutely necessary) · la indispensābilis (absolutely necessary) · be незаме́нны (not dispensable)