immaculate
adjective
William Sansom
Did you know?
You may already use the word immaculate flawlessly, but most of us have a spottier history with its antonymous counterpart, maculate, which means "marked with spots" or "impure." Both words can be traced back to macula, a Latin noun (plural maculae or maculas) that scientists still use for spots on the skin, on the wings of insects, and on the surface of celestial objects. Maculate has not marked as many pages as immaculate, but it appears occasionally, especially as an antithesis to immaculate. The pair is used, for example, by Clive James in a 2019 column in Prospect Magazine, in reference to Emily Wilson's translation of The Odyssey: “… the story sweeps along in immaculate iambic pentameter. In only one small aspect is the immaculateness maculate.â€
Examples of immaculate in a Sentence
Cynthia Ozick, Atlantic, May 1997
… and added to this was the fact that this Soviet Army Colonel had a service record that was as immaculate as a field of freshly fallen snow …
—Tom Clancy, The Cardinal of the Kremlin, (1988) 1989
I was expecting some giant to emerge, but in came a tiny, immaculate, white-haired man.
—Anna Russell, I'm Not Making This Up, You Know, 1985
She had an immaculate record of service.
somehow managed to keep the white carpet immaculate
Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Mar. 2026
Go Vertical For Evans, maintaining an immaculate home is all about the details.
—Quincy Bulin, Southern Living, 8 Mar. 2026
Her hair is always styled, and her work outfits are always stylish and immaculate.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 6 Mar. 2026
The decor inside is immaculate.
—Alexis Simmerman, Austin American Statesman, 28 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for immaculate
Cite this Entry
“Immaculate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/immaculate. Accessed 28 Mar. 2026.
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immaculate
adjective
