inviolate

adjective

in·​vi·​o·​late (ˌ)in-ˈvī-ə-lət How to pronounce inviolate (audio)
: not violated or profaned
especially : pure
inviolately adverb
inviolateness noun

Examples of inviolate in a Sentence

These rights must remain inviolate.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
People respond to the shooting of elementary schoolchildren as a kind of acceptable mayhem to ensure that the right to gun ownership remains inviolate. Robin Givhan, Washington Post, 1 Nov. 2022 This dish is a deli egg-bacon-and-cheese-on-a-roll that has been pasta-fied, fancified, fetishized and turned into an Italian tradition that, like many inviolate Italian traditions, is actually far less old than the Mayflower. Ian Fisher, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2022 And whereas individual therapy must take place in an inviolate private sphere, the couples version comes with elements of exposure and artifice built in. Lidija Haas, The New Republic, 10 June 2022 The daily and seasonal rhythms of bright and dark remained largely inviolate throughout all of evolutionary time—a 4-billion-year streak that began to falter in the 19th century. Ed Yong, The Atlantic, 13 June 2022 Still more thought the love shown in the work of making a home was one of the few activities capitalism hadn’t tainted and should stand inviolate. Joanna Biggs, The New Republic, 11 Feb. 2022 And determining whether human lifetimes have an inviolate maximum might offer clues to understanding aging, as well as aiding research on prolonging life. Tom Siegfried, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Jan. 2022 One inviolate rule is that everyone who enters must be weighed. Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 3 Nov. 2021 Hence, the nation to them is not all holy, a thing inviolate and inviolable, a thing that a man dare not sell or dishonour on pain of eternal perdition. Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 7 Sep. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of inviolate was in the 15th century

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Cite this Entry

“Inviolate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inviolate. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

inviolate

adjective
in·​vi·​o·​late (ˈ)in-ˈvī-ə-lət How to pronounce inviolate (audio)
: not violated
especially : pure
inviolately adverb
inviolateness noun

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