intractable
adjUK, US /ɪnˈtɹæk.tə.bəl/
Etymology From in- + tractable.
1
Not tractable; not able to be managed, controlled, governed or directed.
- And I cannot but expect that this will repeatedly lead to the discovery that an initially intractable problem can be factored after all.1972, Edsger W. Dijkstra, The Humble Programmer (EWD340):
2
Mathematics, Sciences Of a mathematical problem Not able to be solved in polynomial time; too difficult to attempt to solve.
3
Difficult to deal with, solve, or manage. (of a problem)
- Work—bureaucratic work in particular—poses a series of intractable dilemmas that often demand compromises with traditional moral beliefs.1988, Robert Jackall, “Chapter 1: Moral Probations, Old and New”, in Moral Mazes: The World of Corporate Managers, Twentieth Anniversary edition, →ISBN, page 12:
4
Stubborn; obstinate. (of a person)
5
Medicine, Sciences Difficult to treat (of a medical condition).
- Derived terms
- intractability, intractableness, intractably