unacceptable
Britishadjective
-
not satisfactory; inadequate
the standard was wholly unacceptable
-
intolerable
hitting children is unacceptable
Explanation
Something unacceptable is not okay — it's objectionable or displeasing. Hey, are you yelling in the library? That's unacceptable! If a student's behavior is unacceptable, she may get detention or be sent to the principal's office. And if a restaurant patron's meal is unacceptable, he has every right to ask his server for something else. The adjective unacceptable adds the "not" prefix un- to acceptable, "suitable, adequate, or pleasing." We can trace the roots back to the Latin acceptare, "take or receive willingly."
Vocabulary lists containing unacceptable
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.
The number of aid workers killed worldwide in 2025 reached 350, with the most fatalities in Gaza and Sudan, the United Nations said Monday, calling attacks on humanitarians "unacceptable."
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
A Trades Union Congress report, external on Amazon issued in 2020 highlighted "long, gruelling shifts with unreasonable productivity targets and unfair shift patterns" and "unacceptable working conditions".
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
“What happened at Point La Jolla was unacceptable, and I said then that there needed to be accountability,” Gloria said in a statement Thursday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Memphis Depay has accused Corinthians of "unacceptable behaviour" and of breaching an agreement after the Brazilian club decided against renewing his contract.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Joint authorship of the results, if any, of the collaboration was for some reason unacceptable.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
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.
