dissatisfied
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of dissatisfied
First recorded in 1665–75; dissatisfy + -ed 2
Explanation
If you're dissatisfied, you're not happy — you're annoyed and disgruntled. You probably don't enjoy eating out with your parents if they're always dissatisfied with the food they order. You might be dissatisfied with the final episode of your favorite TV show, or dissatisfied with your grades n German last semester. In either case, you're not pleased. A slightly different way to be dissatisfied is to be unconvinced: "She was dissatisfied with the answer he gave when she asked when he planned to pay back the money he owed her." Dissatisfied combines dis-, "not," and satisfied, from a Latin root, satisfacere, "do enough."
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.
Although the inquiry was public, some families said they were dissatisfied with it as it did not review all patient files.
From BBC • Jun. 17, 2026
The widespread pullback shows that companies are dissatisfied with the return on investment on AI.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 4, 2026
Still, Angelenos are far more dissatisfied with the direction of the city than they were in 1989, he said.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2026
Merz's poll ratings have plummeted -- a survey this week by Forsa showed only 14 percent were satisfied with him, against 84 percent who were dissatisfied.
From Barron's • May 29, 2026
Let us be dissatisfied until men and women, however black they may be, will be judged on the basis of the content of their character, not on the basis of the color of their skin.
From "While the World Watched: A Birmingham Bombing Survivor Comes of Age during the Civil Rights Movement" by Carolyn Maull McKinstry
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.
