impractical

[im-prak-ti-kuhl]

adjective

1. not practical or useful.

2. not capable of dealing with practical matters; lacking sense.

3. idealistic.

4. impracticable.

impractical

/ ɪmˈpræktɪkəl /

adjective

1. not practical or workable

   an impractical solution

2. not given to practical matters or gifted with practical skills

   he is intelligent but too impractical for commercial work

Other Word Forms

• impractically adverb
• impracticality noun
• impracticalness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of impractical¹

First recorded in 1860–65; im- ² + practical

Example Sentences

This provoked yelps from technocrats who said it was impractical and superfluous.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The Refugee Council, which supports asylum-seekers, says making refugee status temporary is both "highly impractical" as well as "inhumane".

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Ref x Nara is “nostalgic, theatrical, and a little impractical, all made from scratch,” according to the brand.

Read more on Salon

Researchers say the approach could excel where traditional robots fail, like situations where central control is impractical or impossible due to distance, scale or communication barriers.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Researchers say this approach could excel where traditional robots fail, like situations where central control is impractical or impossible due to distance, scale or communication barriers.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• absurd 
• illogical 
• impossible 
• improbable 
• quixotic 
• speculative 
• unattainable 
• unreal 
• unusable 
• unwise 
• unworkable 
• useless