nonproductive
Americanadjective
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not productive; unproductive.
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not worthwhile or beneficial; not leading to practical or beneficial results.
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not producing goods directly, as employees in charge of personnel or inspectors.
adjective
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(of workers) not directly responsible for producing goods
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having disappointing results; unproductive
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of nonproductive
First recorded in 1920–25; non- + productive
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.
Buy-now-pay-later products can be “a nonproductive way to build credit,” Patel said, “especially if you can qualify for a credit card.”
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026
“While I agree that we need to remove nonproductive turf … when I think of waste, I think about it more in the sense of agriculture, since that’s where we could get the most savings.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2022
The physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, wrote in a letter released on Friday that Mr. Biden was still experiencing a runny nose and fatigue, and that he had an “occasional nonproductive, now ‘loose’ cough.”
From New York Times ● Jul. 22, 2022
Meanwhile, the Mariners offense was sluggish and nonproductive against Royals starter Kris Bubic.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 18, 2021
However, many of these old-timers have not seen the attentions of a professional plant breeder for many years and throw a fair percentage of bizarre, misshapen, nonproductive plants.
From Gardening Without Irrigation: or without much, anyway by Solomon, Steve
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.
