ineligible
Americanadjective
-
not eligible; not permitted or suitable.
Employees are ineligible in this contest.
- Synonyms:
- unsuitable
-
legally disqualified to hold an office.
-
legally disqualified to function as a juror, voter, witness, etc., or to become the recipient of a privilege.
noun
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ineligible
Explanation
To be ineligible is to not qualify for something. When you're eligible for something — like a contest — you are allowed to enter. Being ineligible is the opposite; it means that you can't enter or participate in something. After a certain age, children are ineligible for playing Little League baseball. Students below a certain grade point average are ineligible for scholarships. People born outside the United States are ineligible to run for President. If you want to know who's eligible and ineligible for something, check the rules or laws.
Vocabulary lists containing ineligible
Set, Hut! Football Vocabulary
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American Football, 3rd Quarter
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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.
It isn’t clear why traders are spending their money on extreme underdogs and ineligible candidates, and the pattern is seemingly at odds with Polymarket CEO and founder Shayne Coplan’s stated purpose for the market.
From Barron's • Apr. 22, 2026
Gyanesh Kumar, the chief election commissioner, has said the revision exercise's aim is to ensure a "pure electoral roll" with no eligible voters excluded and no ineligible persons included.
From BBC • Apr. 12, 2026
Jon Rahm is confident he will be in Europe's team to face the United States in next year's Ryder Cup despite currently being ineligible to play.
From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026
In doing so, the DOJ has asked the states to sign onto an agreement under which they agree to remove within 45 days any voters that the DOJ flags as ineligible.
From Salon • Apr. 3, 2026
Gary Edwards was ineligible to play, Carter had to forfeit the three games in which he had played, and Carter was out of the playoffs.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
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.
