inapt

[in-apt]

adjective

1. not apt or fitting.

   Synonyms: inapposite, unfit, inappropriate, unsuitable, unsuited
   Antonyms: appropriate

2. without aptitude or capacity.

   Synonyms: awkward, clumsy, incapable
   Antonyms: capable

inapt

/ ɪnˈæpt /

adjective

1. not apt or fitting; inappropriate

2. lacking skill; inept

Other Word Forms

• inaptly adverb
• inaptness noun
• inaptitude noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of inapt¹

First recorded in 1735–45; in- ³ + apt

Example Sentences

This renders Mr. Bacon’s subtitle inapt: “The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald” has been told and retold by authors and bards.

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After all, it’s a movie for which too much cleanup may be inapt.

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It is also why Republicans continue to mock what they call the inaptly named Inflation Reduction Act, which passed in 2022 on strictly Democratic votes.

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That was just one example in recent days of the Republicans’ clown car backfiring in the party’s bumbling drive to weaponize the government against political foes — the very crime it inaptly projects onto Democrats.

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However inapt as drama, and however much real estate they steal from the development of a richer plot, such songs serve an important function, like the witty prose of the novel.

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