unskillful

adjective

ˌən-ˈskil-fəl How to pronounce unskillful (audio)
Definition of unskillfulnext
1
as in incompetent
lacking qualities (as knowledge, skill, or ability) required to do a job an unskillful editor can be worse than none at all

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in inexperienced
lacking or showing a lack of expert skill some painfully unskillful playing by the band's guitarist

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 unskillful As is often the case, Louie was unlucky — and also unskillful. — Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 12 Mar. 2017 One of the most fraught issues around suicide clusters is unskillful media coverage, which studies suggest can spur copycats. — Kate Siber, Outside Online, 4 Sep. 2018 It was intended to be a mockery of the way White people danced, though plantation owners often interpreted slaves' movements as unskillful attempts to be like them. — Scottie Andrew and Harmeet Kaur, CNN, 6 July 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unskillful
  1. incompetent
  2. inexperienced
  3. unfit
  4. amateur
  5. unfitted
  6. unskilled
  7. incapable
Adjective
  • Her Volumnia bellows at her meek daughter-in-law, Virgilia (Justine Faith) as though reprimanding an incompetent private.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
  • One of the lasting side effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and our catastrophically incompetent response to it is the decrease in trust in public health experts and their advice.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of incompetent
Adjective
  • Over the same period, entry-level head count at the high-intensity firms rose 12%, contradicting predictions and fears that young or inexperienced workers would be most at risk of losing their jobs to AI.
    — Rachel Barber, USA Today, 1 July 2026
  • Immer and Lois work with land stewards to find projects that make sense for eager but often inexperienced volunteers.
    — Pedro Moura, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
Definition of inexperienced
Adjective
  • If venue personnel deem any person to be a threat, or otherwise unfit, in their sole discretion, he or she will not be permitted access and shall forfeit the prize.
    — AJC.com, AJC.com, 30 June 2026
  • She was deemed unfit to stand trial on medical grounds.
    — The Week UK, TheWeek, 27 June 2026
Definition of unfit
Adjective
  • The award is handed out to the most outstanding amateur baseball player in the nation.
    — Hunter DeLauder, AJC.com, 30 June 2026
  • Now in its eighteenth year, the international competition celebrates the skill and imagination of amateur and professional astrophotographers from across the world.
    — Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
Definition of amateur
Adjective
  • Mix Materials The beauty in the unfitted kitchen aesthetic is found in its collected look.
    — Patricia Shannon, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 May 2025
  • The venerable American clan at the center of the narrator’s reminiscences are wholly unfitted to the modern world and no longer endowed with the fortune that one of them brought home long ago on clipper ships.
    — Daniel Akst, WSJ, 2 Sep. 2022
Definition of unfitted
Adjective
  • According to Grant, factors like operational downtime, the productivity drag of unskilled workers and post-incident audits and reporting requirements can run four to eight times higher than the direct costs.
    — Sentry Insurance, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026
  • Road accidents kill thousands in Bangladesh every year, due to a combination of poor road conditions, unskilled driving and inadequate oversight of traffic rules.
    — Adam England, PEOPLE, 25 May 2026
Definition of unskilled
Adjective
  • Court documents show prosecutors accused Fontes of rape a victim incapable of giving consent because of the effect of alcohol, drugs, or other substances.
    — Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 2 July 2026
  • For most of his career, Huang has seemed constitutionally incapable of standing still.
    — Mariella Rudi, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
Definition of incapable

Browse Nearby Words

unskilled
unskillful
unskillfully
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

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

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on unskillful

Nglish: Translation of unskillful for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All