unprincipled

adjective

ˌən-ˈprin(t)-s(ə-)pəld How to pronounce unprincipled (audio)
Definition of unprinciplednext
as in immoral
not guided by or showing a concern for what is right an unprincipled businessman who made a lot of money—and didn't care how he did it

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of unprincipled Ditto his despicable aides and Cabinet members, his unprincipled sycophants and suck-ups. — Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 9 June 2026 In every era a certain kind of unprincipled demagogue driven by an insatiable need for attention and a sense of what will capture the public’s imagination rises to the fore. — Mark Lilla, The New York Review of Books, 5 Mar. 2026 How pathetically far this blithering, unprincipled piece of trash has gone to endanger other lives, to expressly distract and deflect from his own wicked deeds, and to further benefit his grifting family’s larcenously enlarged bounties. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 8 Mar. 2026 Rule by ‘ambitious, and unprincipled men’ Partisanship is the primary problem for the American republic, according to Washington. — Robert A. Strong, The Conversation, 8 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for unprincipled
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unprincipled
  1. immoral
  2. ruthless
  3. unscrupulous
  4. corrupt
Adjective
  • Some rabbinic readings attribute Lot’s hesitation to leave Sodom to his immoral greed and inordinate wealth.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 July 2026
  • Court records show that 60-year-old Bradley Kyle Martin, of Dearborn Heights, is charged with using a computer or internet to communicate with another person to commit a crime and accosting children for immoral purposes.
    — DeJanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 25 June 2026
Definition of immoral
Adjective
  • Natural selection is usually ruthless about weeding out traits with no function.
    — Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
  • Supergirl builds to a final showdown with Krem of the Yellow Hills, the ruthless Brigands leader who murdered Ruthye’s family and poisoned Krypto early in the film.
    — Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026
Definition of ruthless
Adjective
  • The Khmer Rouge lost power in 1979, but fighting and instability continued for decades, leaving Cambodia's temples unprotected and vulnerable… easy targets for unscrupulous antiquities dealers like Douglas Latchford.
    — Anderson Cooper, CBS News, 28 June 2026
  • At age 11, my favorite Broadway show was Follies – a classic preteen tale about the decay of female beauty and fading fame within an unscrupulous industry of vaudeville and burlesque.
    — Greg Evans, Deadline, 27 June 2026
Definition of unscrupulous
Adjective
  • Harry and the six other high-profile claimants failed to prove their allegations that the publisher unlawfully obtained private information through methods including private investigators, deception, phone hacking and corrupt payments.
    — Erin Hill, PEOPLE, 7 July 2026
  • After all, this was FIFA, the infamously corrupt governing body of international soccer that seems to function not based on its rulebook but on the whims of a few guys in a room.
    — Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 7 July 2026
Definition of corrupt

Browse Nearby Words

unpretty
unprincipled
unprintable
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Cite this Entry

“Unprincipled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unprincipled. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of unprincipled for Spanish Speakers

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