How to Use inconclusive in a Sentence

inconclusive

adjective
  • The results of the test were inconclusive.
  • The first two rounds of the boxing match were inconclusive.
  • Why not pull him in the second when an inconclusive test came in?
    — Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2020
  • The study was inconclusive about what those factors might be.
    — Sarah Todd, Quartz at Work, 7 Oct. 2019
  • Polls are, at this point, inconclusive.
    — David Remnick, New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2026
  • The few analyses that have been carried out so far have been inconclusive.
    — IEEE Spectrum, 2 June 2018
  • The inconclusive first ballot hints at the many rounds that will be needed.
    — Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2024
  • Rice claims a window was rolled down and a gun was pointed at him, but the video is inconclusive.
    — Ashley Remkus, AL.com, 19 Apr. 2018
  • The results of a test Williamson took were inconclusive, a team source said.
    — Christian Clark, NOLA.com, 13 Jan. 2021
  • The research on small, frequent meals for weight loss is more inconclusive.
    — Caitlin Beale, Health, 19 May 2026
  • State fire officials said the cause of that fire was inconclusive.
    — Alec Johnson, jsonline.com, 28 Feb. 2026
  • Scores and scores to too-small studies came to inconclusive results.
    — Helen Branswell, STAT, 30 Dec. 2021
  • Yet the data is so inconclusive that the speed-limit debate rages on.
    — Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 18 Sep. 2021
  • Research on whether grapes or the resveratrol in grapes can help with weight loss is mixed and inconclusive.
    — Nancy Lebrun, Verywell Health, 27 Jan. 2025
  • The first vote, which took place the previous evening, was inconclusive and produced black smoke.
    — Kate Nalepinski, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 May 2025
  • Two of these questions are barely answered and the rest are inconclusive.
    — Ariana Brockington, refinery29.com, 23 Oct. 2020
  • Of those, 24 were negative and one of the tests was inconclusive.
    — Morgan Hines, USA TODAY, 7 Mar. 2020
  • The second was very close to being offside, but replays were inconclusive so the goal stood.
    — Jonathan Tannenwald, Philly.com, 31 Mar. 2018
  • In the meantime, that war drew to an inconclusive close in 1764.
    — Literary Hub, 26 May 2026
  • But the marker test was inconclusive and so Cindy decided to move on.
    — Jill Tucker, SFChronicle.com, 15 June 2018
  • Years of inconclusive fighting has pushed the Arab world’s poorest nation to the brink of famine.
    — Samy Magdy, ajc, 16 Apr. 2022
  • Years of inconclusive fighting has pushed the Arab world's poorest nation to the brink of famine.
    — Jon Gambrell, ajc, 15 Nov. 2022
  • The first test was inconclusive, and the second was negative.
    — Megan E. Doherty, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Sep. 2020
  • The first test was inconclusive, and the second was negative.
    — Popular Science, 16 Sep. 2020
  • But that replay was determined to be inconclusive, the out call was upheld, and the inning was over.
    — Mike Digiovannastaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2022
  • But the data remains inconclusive so far.
    — New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
  • Tests on the fingernail scraping and one of the bloodstains were inconclusive.
    — Amanda Lee Myers, USA TODAY, 5 Mar. 2025
  • Tests on the fingernail scraping and one of the bloodstains were inconclusive.
    — Alexis Simmerman, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025
  • The zoo conducted necropsies on the owlets, but the results were inconclusive.
    — Megan Becka, cleveland, 24 Aug. 2022
  • While an injury study may be inconclusive, what is conclusive is that despite some pleas to not add games, the schedule will grow.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Feb. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'inconclusive.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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