unreliable
[uhn-ri-lahy-uh-buh l]
- not reliable; not to be relied or depended on.
Origin of unreliable
Synonyms
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.comundependable, irresponsible, untrustworthy.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for unreliable
Contemporary Examples
Could you talk a minute about the notion of being an unreliable narrator?
The results played right into the hands of those who wanted to portray the opposition as unreliable.
Digital Doublethink: Playing Truth or Dare with Putin, Assad and ISISChristopher Dickey, Anna Nemtsova
November 16, 2014
Excerpts of his video statements fill the highlight reels when unreliable confessions are the subject of TV programs.
The reports are often unreliable, however, leading to confusion.
The process was a maddening tangle of unreliable tracking, delays, and confusion, the family member said.
Historical Examples
They were biased, unreliable at best, as regards culinary matters.
He had always been eccentric and unreliable, and now his intellect was threatened.
The Siege of BostonAllen French
A machine that is as unreliable as he is would have no market.
Mark Twain, A Biography, 1835-1910, CompleteAlbert Bigelow Paine
There can be no question that he was idle, untruthful, and unreliable.
A Great ManArnold Bennett
Even beneath her feet, now, the floor seemed unsteady, unreliable.
The Crimson TideRobert W. Chambers
unreliable
- not reliable; untrustworthyan unreliable witness
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for unreliable
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper