incompetent

[ in-kom-pi-tuhnt ]
See synonyms for: incompetentincompetentsincompetently on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. not competent; lacking qualification or ability; incapable: an incompetent candidate.

  2. characterized by or showing incompetence: His incompetent acting ruined the play.

  1. Law.

    • being unable or legally unqualified to perform specified acts or to be held legally responsible for such acts.

    • inadmissible, as evidence.

noun
  1. an incompetent person; a mentally deficient person.

  2. Law. a person lacking power to act with legal effectiveness.

Origin of incompetent

1
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Late Latin incompetent- (stem of incompetēns ) “unsuitable.” See in-3, competent

synonym study For incompetent

1. See incapable.

Other words for incompetent

Opposites for incompetent

Other words from incompetent

  • in·com·pe·tent·ly, adverb

Words Nearby incompetent

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use incompetent in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for incompetent

incompetent

/ (ɪnˈkɒmpɪtənt) /


adjective
  1. not possessing the necessary ability, skill, etc to do or carry out a task; incapable

  2. marked by lack of ability, skill, etc

  1. law not legally qualified: an incompetent witness

  2. (of rock strata, folds, etc) yielding readily to pressure so as to undergo structural deformation

noun
  1. an incompetent person

Derived forms of incompetent

  • incompetence or incompetency, noun
  • incompetently, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012