- Today's Word
Intractable
in-TRAK-tuh-bul
Definition
(adjective) Hard to control, manage, or deal with; not easily relieved or cured; stubbornly resistant to change or solution.
Example
The peace talks collapsed again, stalled by the same intractable disagreements that had derailed every previous attempt.
Word Origin
From Latin intractabilis, meaning “unmanageable” — formed from in- (not) + tractabilis (manageable), which itself derives from tractare, meaning “to handle or manage.” The root tractare also gives us words like tractor, treat, and contract — all carrying the sense of handling or pulling something into order. Intractable, then, is literally that which cannot be pulled into line.
Fun Fact
In medicine, “intractable” has a very specific and serious meaning — an intractable condition is one that fails to respond to all standard treatments. Intractable epilepsy, for example, affects roughly one-third of all epilepsy patients whose seizures cannot be controlled by medication. The designation matters enormously in healthcare policy, as it often determines eligibility for experimental treatments, surgical intervention, or access to otherwise restricted medications. The word carries real weight in clinical settings in a way it rarely does in everyday conversation.