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Justyna Jupowicz-Kozak quote

Justyna Jupowicz-Kozak

CEO of Professional Science Editing for Scientists @ prosciediting.com

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it's imperceptible

Grammar usage guide and real-world examples

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

4 human-written examples

She asks her suitor, "Is it chill that you're in my head?" If there is a wink in either of those lines, it's imperceptible.

News & Media

The New Yorker

"But you make me jealous". This is Swift the unyielding perfectionist, the professionally heartbroken woman who has built a career by enacting lyrical revenge on her lovers characterizing herself as "chill". She has grown fond of this word, which also appears on "Delicate". She asks her suitor, "Is it chill that you're in my head?" If there is a wink in either of those lines, it's imperceptible.

News & Media

The New Yorker

It's not a deal-breaker because it's imperceptible when you're viewing a movie in landscape mode from an angle, if two people are watching together, say.

News & Media

Forbes

These may flicker, and even if it's imperceptible to you, it may be very painful or distracting to the autistic person.

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

56 human-written examples

This reform, called 'silent reform' because it is imperceptible to citizens in its early stages, basically consists in increasing maximum pensions in line with inflation instead of wage or productivity growth.

Science

SERIEs

The flickering is so slight that it is imperceptible to the human eye, but the camera on another phone can detect it at a distance of up to ten metres.

News & Media

The Economist

Colette Kaufman, who lives on the 11th floor of a building across the street, said that if the noise had been muffled, it was imperceptible to her. "It's like trying to describe pain," she said.

News & Media

The New York Times

The study reveals that 60% of Europeans and almost 80% of North Americans cannot see the glowing band of our galaxy because of the effects of artificial lighting, while it is imperceptible to the entire populations of Singapore, Kuwait and Malta.

News & Media

The Guardian

It was found that this filter reduced jittering to the point where it was imperceptible.

The compression is indeed based on adding quantization noises where it is imperceptible, or at least barely audible.

The sinking is so subtle that it is imperceptible on the ground, save for the effect on infrastructure.

News & Media

Los Angeles Times
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Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Pair this phrase with sensory nouns like scent, sound, movement, or change to provide clear context.

Common error

Do not use "it's imperceptible" to mean that something does not exist. It specifically refers to the limitation of perception, not the absence of the object itself.

Antonio Rotolo, PhD - Digital Humanist | Computational Linguist | CEO @Ludwig.guru

Antonio Rotolo, PhD

Digital Humanist | Computational Linguist | CEO @Ludwig.guru

Source & Trust

93%

Authority and reliability

4.9/5

Expert rating

Real-world application tested

Linguistic Context

In terms of grammatical function, "it's imperceptible" acts as a complete predicative statement where the subject pronoun 'it' is linked to an adjective via the contracted verb 'is'. According to Ludwig, this structure is primarily used to assign a quality of extreme subtlety to a previously mentioned noun or concept.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

55%

Science

30%

Academia

10%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

3%

Wiki

1%

Social Media

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "it's imperceptible" is a highly effective phrase for describing the finest nuances in both physical and abstract realms. Data from Ludwig indicates that while the contraction itself appears less frequently in strictly formal scientific journals than its full form, it is a staple of high-end literary and tech journalism. It is most commonly used to describe sensations or changes that exist but fail to trigger a response from human senses. Writers should favor this phrase when they want to convey a sense of extreme subtlety or technical precision without sounding overly clinical.

FAQs

How to use "it's imperceptible" in a sentence?

You can use it to describe a very subtle change, for example: 'The movement of the clock's hand is so slow that "it's imperceptible" to the naked eye'.

What can I say instead of "it's imperceptible"?

Depending on your tone, you could use "it is unnoticeable", "it is indiscernible", or "it is undetectable".

Which is correct, "it's imperceptible" or "it is imperceptible"?

Both are grammatically correct. "it's imperceptible" is a contraction used in neutral or informal writing, while "it is imperceptible" is preferred in formal or academic contexts.

What's the difference between "it's imperceptible" and "it's invisible"?

While "it's invisible" specifically refers to sight, "it's imperceptible" can refer to any of the senses, including sound, touch, or smell.

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Real-world application tested

Most frequent sentences: