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Synonyms

graceless

American  
[greys-lis] / ˈgreɪs lɪs /

adjective

  1. lacking grace, pleasing elegance, or charm.

  2. without any sense of right or propriety.

graceless British  
/ ˈɡreɪslɪs /

adjective

  1. lacking any sense of right and wrong; depraved

  2. lacking grace or excellence

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • gracelessly adverb
  • gracelessness noun

Etymology

Origin of graceless

Middle English word dating back to 1325–75; grace, -less

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.

Was “Boots” going to be “Private Benjamin,” some graceless sitcom about a misfit soldier?

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 9, 2025

The musical, first staged in 1959, is loosely based on “The Princess and the Pea” fairy tale; Foster plays Princess Winnifred, a graceless minor royal who is a possible bride for a local prince.

From New York Times • May 17, 2024

But a graceless end should not obscure DiFi’s shining accomplishments and her place in American history.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 29, 2023

He describes his co-star in The Piano, the American actor Harvey Keitel, as "truculent and difficult and a bit graceless".

From BBC • Mar. 17, 2023

My feet snapped over my head and I continued my graceless plunge to the ground.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

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.