inconclusive

Etymology

It is formed from English in- + conclusive, with the negative prefix.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} Conclusive is from French conclusif,^[3] conclūsīvus,^[3][2] from conclūdō (“to shut up, enclose”), formed from com- (“together”) and claudō (“to shut”).^[3] Johnson (1755) and Webster (1828) analysed it in the same way.^[7][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

Not conclusive in argument or evidence; not settling a doubt or dispute: 1700, in a new edition of Locke's Essay Concerning Human Understanding.^[2] Etymonline dates the word to the 1660s, with the senses "not leading to a conclusion" and "leading to no result in action, ineffective",^[3] the Shorter Oxford to the late 17th century,^[4] Dictionary.com to 1680–90,^[6] and Merriam-Webster to 1707.^[5]

Semantic evolution

The word began in argument and evidence: Johnson (1755) defined it as not compelling the mind to a decision and not showing convincing evidence,^[7] and Webster (1828) said an argument is inconclusive when it does not prove a disputed case well enough to end the debate.^[8] In 1836 it was also used of a person, given to reaching no conclusion,^[2] and then, from 1841, of actions and events that reach no final result,^[2][4] as in a war or a battle.^[5] The noun inconclusion, recorded from 1847, stayed rare;^[2][3] Etymonline suggests that this is because it could mean either reaching no conclusion or reaching an unwarranted one.^[3]

Timeline

• 1700 – not conclusive in argument or evidence.^[2]
• 1836 – of a person, undecided.^[2]
• 1841 – not conclusive in action, reaching no final result.^[2][4]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Not leading to a firm conclusion or definite result; not settling a question: The tests were inconclusive, so the doctor ordered more.^[9][5][2]
2. Not decisive in action; ending without a clear outcome: an inconclusive skirmish.^[2][4][5]

Word family

• inconclusively
• inconclusiveness

Related words

• conclude
• conclusion
• inconclusion

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
7. ^ a b Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
8. ^ a b Webster, Noah (1828), An American Dictionary of the English Language, New York: S. Converse
9. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins