incredible
gb/ɪŋkɹˈɛdəbəl/ us/ɪŋkɹˈɛdəbəl/
B1
English
~ 5700
Senses
0 senses
adjective
B1
property
1
extremely impressive or very good
Very, very good, exciting, or impressive.
Usage pattern:
[something] is incredible
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes think 'incredible' always means 'not true' because of the word 'credible'. In modern everyday English, this sense is usually positive and means 'very good' or 'very impressive'. Use it like 'amazing', especially before positive nouns like 'view', 'job', or 'experience'.
Synonyms
amazing (Very close in meaning; slightly more common in everyday speech.)
|
fantastic (Very positive and enthusiastic, often a bit informal.)
|
awesome (Informal and very enthusiastic; used a lot in casual speech.)
Antonyms
terrible (Opposite in quality; describes something very bad.)
|
ordinary (Opposite in impressiveness; something normal and not special.)
Collocations
incredible experience
|incredible job
|incredible talent
|incredible story
|absolutely incredible
|look incredible
Themes
emotions
|opinions
|daily life
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The view from the top of the mountain was absolutely incredible.
- You did an incredible job on this presentation.
- The concert last night was incredible, and the crowd didn’t stop cheering.
- She’s an incredible singer with a very powerful voice.
- We had an incredible time on our vacation in Japan.
Learner examples
- The movie was incredible, and I want to see it again.
- He is an incredible cook and makes great food.
- This cake tastes incredible.
- The team played an incredible game and won.
- Her English is incredible for someone who started last year.
adjective
B2
property
2
hard or impossible to believe
So strange or surprising that you think it cannot be true.
Usage pattern:
it is incredible that [clause]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use this sense in clearly positive situations where they only want to say 'very good'. If you want to show doubt or that something seems too strange to be true, use this meaning. If you only want to praise something, the first sense (very good/impressive) is usually better. Also, 'incredible' here often takes 'that'-clauses: 'It is incredible that he lied,' not *'It is incredible of he lied.'
Synonyms
unbelievable (Very close in meaning; can be either positive or negative depending on context.)
|
implausible (More formal; stresses that something does not seem reasonable or likely.)
Antonyms
credible (Describes something that can be believed because it seems reasonable or true.)
|
believable (Plain opposite; easy to accept as true or real.)
Collocations
incredible story
|incredible claim
|incredible coincidence
|almost incredible
|incredible but true
|it seems incredible that
Themes
thinking
|truth
|communication
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- It’s incredible that no one was hurt in such a serious accident.
- The witness told an incredible story that the jury found hard to accept.
- Given the evidence, his explanation sounds incredible.
- The idea that he acted alone is simply incredible.
- At first, the discovery seemed incredible, but several studies later confirmed it.
Learner examples
- It is incredible that they survived the crash.
- His story was so strange that it sounded incredible.
- The idea that the child walked ten kilometers alone is incredible.
- To many people, space travel was once incredible.
- Her sudden change in behavior was almost incredible.
adjective
B2
property
3
extremely large or intense amount
Very, very big in number, amount, or strength.
Usage pattern:
an incredible amount of [something]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use 'very big' where 'incredible' would sound more natural and stronger, especially with 'amount of', 'pressure', or 'pain'. Also, avoid saying *'so incredible much'; instead use 'an incredible amount of' or 'incredibly much' (though 'an incredible amount of' is more natural).
Synonyms
huge (General word for very big size or amount; slightly less strong than 'incredible' in many contexts.)
|
enormous (Very large in size or amount; more neutral in tone.)
|
immense (Often slightly more formal; emphasizes very great size or intensity.)
Antonyms
small (Opposite in size or amount; describes a low quantity.)
|
moderate (Opposite in intensity; describes something that is not very strong or large.)
Collocations
an incredible amount of
|incredible pressure
|incredible speed
|incredible effort
|incredible pain
|incredible energy
Themes
quantity
|intensity
|daily life
|communication
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- She put an incredible amount of work into the project.
- He felt an incredible pressure to succeed.
- We had to travel at incredible speed to arrive on time.
- The company has seen an incredible growth in customers this year.
- After the surgery, he experienced incredible pain in his leg.
Learner examples
- There was an incredible amount of traffic this morning.
- The team made an incredible effort to finish on time.
- I feel incredible pressure before big exams.
- The singer has an incredible amount of energy on stage.
- They spent an incredible amount of money on the house.
Grammar
Dictionary form
incredible
IPA
GB/ɪŋkɹˈɛdəbəl/
US/ɪŋkɹˈɛdəbəl/
Syllables & stress
in - cred - ible (3 syllables)
Stress on 2nd syllable (cred)
Word forms
Adjective
- Base: incredible
Word family
Core family
incredibly
adverb A2
Related words
Advanced or less common
incredulous
adjective
incredulity
noun
incredulously
adverb
Expressions
an incredible amount of
1/ən ɪŋkɹˈɛdəbəl əmˈaʊnt əv/
fixed phrase
very large quantity of something
Used before an uncountable or plural noun to say there is a very, very large quantity of something.
Examples
- She has an incredible amount of homework to do tonight.
- The project required an incredible amount of time and money.
- He ate an incredible amount of food at the party.
incredible as it may seem
1/ɪŋkɹˈɛdəbəl ˈæz ˈɪt mˈeɪ sˈim/
fixed phrase
introducing an unlikely-sounding fact
Used to introduce a fact that sounds very strange or hard to believe, but is true.
Examples
- Incredible as it may seem, they finished the whole building in six months.
- Incredible as it may seem, he taught himself five languages.
- Incredible as it may seem, the tiny startup soon became a global company.
incredible but true
1/ɪŋkɹˈɛdəbəl bˈʌt tɹˈu/
fixed phrase
surprising fact that is real
Used to say that something sounds very surprising, but it is in fact real or correct.
Examples
- It sounds incredible but true: the village has had no crime for three years.
- Incredible but true, the lost ring was found in the garden after ten years.
- The story is incredible but true, according to the police report.
that's incredible
1/ðˈæts ɪŋkɹˈɛdəbəl/
fixed phrase
expressing admiration or amazement
You say this to show that you think something is very surprising, very good, or hard to believe.
Examples
- You finished the marathon in under three hours? That’s incredible!
- When she showed me the painting, all I could say was, “That’s incredible.”
- “I just got the job in New York.” “Wow, that’s incredible!”