inarticulate

 
Pronunciation: /ˌɪnɑːˈtɪkjʊlət/

adjective

  • 1unable to express one’s ideas or feelings clearly or easily: an inarticulate man of action
  • not clearly expressed or pronounced: Fay gave a faint, inarticulate cry
  • not expressed in words: mention of her mother filled her with inarticulate irritation
  • 2without joints or articulations.
  • Zoology denoting a brachiopod in which the valves of the shell have no hinge and are held together by muscles.

Derivatives

inarticulacy

noun

inarticulately

adverb

inarticulateness

noun

Origin:

early 17th century: from in-1 'not' + the adjective articulate; the sense 'not clearly pronounced' corresponds to that of late Latin inarticulatus