unskillfulness

noun

as in incompetence

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for unskillfulness
  1. incompetence
  2. incompetency
  3. inability
  4. clumsiness
Noun
  • In it, the author described a culture of confusion, stress, and incompetence, as contractors competed for work to be completed under near-impossible deadlines.
    — Cortney Harding, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026
  • The most serious charges — which included incompetence, negligence and failure of duty — were dismissed.
    — Alene Tchekmedyian, Los Angeles Times, 17 June 2026
Definition of incompetence
Noun
  • Federal agents have descended upon the home of Cindy Rodriguez Singh, the North Texas mom who was recently sent to a state hospital after an incompetency ruling in the murder of her young son.
    — Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 12 May 2026
  • The longer the delay, the more the system risks turning temporary incompetency into long-term confinement.
    — Stephen Martin, Oklahoma Watch, 30 Mar. 2026
Definition of incompetency
Noun
  • It was reflected in his inability to record a single strikeout.
    — Justice delos Santos, Mercury News, 8 July 2026
  • While there are some drawbacks compared to traditional investments — such as its inability to earn dividends — there are several ways to add gold to your portfolio.
    — Liz Knueven, CNBC, 7 July 2026
Definition of inability
Noun
  • In January 2024, Lola was diagnosed with leukemia after her parents initially mistook bruises appearing across her body for childhood clumsiness.
    — Jordan Greene, PEOPLE, 25 May 2026
  • The tree, which graces a botanical garden, bears patient witness to all manner of human clumsiness.
    — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 8 May 2026
Definition of clumsiness
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.

Browse Nearby Words

unskillfully
unskillfulness
unslakable
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

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

Copy Citation
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