Which word means "impossible to be calmed down or made peaceful"?

• A. implacable
• B. innocuous
• C. irascible
• D. impetuous

Answer: (A)

The key idea is a word for something that cannot be calmed or pacified. Implacable captures this precisely: it describes people or forces that refuse to be placated, appeased, or softened, no matter what you do. The prefix im- marks negation, and placable means able to be soothed or pacified, so implacable literally means not able to be pacified. For example, an implacable foe won’t yield to negotiation, and implacable grief can persist despite consolation.

Innocuous means harmless or unimportant, which has no bearing on whether something can be soothed. Irascible describes a quick temper or irritability, not an incapacity to be calmed. Impetuous means acting with sudden, reckless force or without thought, which also doesn’t convey an inability to be pacified. Thus, implacable best fits the description.