adjective
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not comfortable
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feeling or causing discomfort or unease; disquieting
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of uncomfortable
First recorded in 1585–95; un- 1 + comfortable
Explanation
If it's very hot or very cold in the room, chances are you are going to feel uncomfortable or ill-at-ease. The word uncomfortable comes from the prefix un- meaning "not" and comfortable meaning "affording comfort." When something is uncomfortable, it doesn't allow you to relax. A hard chair can be uncomfortable. So can a tense situation in which two people are arguing. Someone can make you feel uncomfortable by saying something inappropriate.
Vocabulary lists containing uncomfortable
"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 12–15
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un-
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un-
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Just as things began to feel real, the connection she longed for would suddenly feel uncomfortable, even threatening.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Add a 3% real interest rate to roughly 7% inflation generated by rapid wage growth and the arithmetic becomes uncomfortable.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
After the call, Wilson sent Ghost a text, which was shown to the court, that read: "Charlotte says all good. She just meant 'it was a bizarre situation' not that she felt personally uncomfortable."
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
The court found that while one of Wilson's 2024 Instagram posts had suggested MacInnes "changed her story about feeling uncomfortable about what happened in the bathroom", this was not defamatory and was also "substantially true".
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he turned and shambled back to his seat.
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
