indeterminate

 
Pronunciation: /ˌɪndɪˈtəːmɪnət/

adjective

  • 1not exactly known, established, or defined: the carpet is an indeterminate dull shade the date of manufacture is indeterminate
  • (of a judicial sentence) not of a fixed length but dependent on the convicted person’s conduct: the abolition of the indeterminate borstal sentence for young offenders
  • Mathematics (of a quantity) having no definite or definable value.
  • Medicine (of a condition) from which a diagnosis of the underlying cause cannot be made: indeterminate colitis
  • 2 Botany (of a shoot) not having all the axes terminating in a flower bud and so potentially of indefinite length.

Derivatives

indeterminacy

noun

indeterminately

adverb

indeterminateness

noun

Origin:

early 17th century: from late Latin indeterminatus, from in- 'not' + Latin determinatus 'limited, determined' (see determinate)