unsustainable
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unsustainable
1670–80; un- 1 + sustainable ( def. )
Explanation
If something is unsustainable, there's just no way to keep doing it at the same rate or in the same way. You've been able to keep your new puppy from whining by petting her all night long, but that's unsustainable. When you can bear something, or continue it, it's sustainable, from the Latin root sustinere, "bear or endure." Unsustainable things can't go on, like unsustainable economic growth that's bound to level out or drop eventually, or an unsustainable expectation that you will always have a perfect grade point average. When it comes to the environment, practices that cause long-term harm or deplete resources are also unsustainable: "Ending unsustainable fishing practices successfully revived the salmon population."
Vocabulary lists containing unsustainable
Power Prefix: un-
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Organisms and Environments 1: The Environment
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: un-
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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.
That would make the current stalemate in Iran unsustainable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
"This is unsustainable, not just for households but also for the market as a whole," said Adam Scorer, chief executive of fuel poverty charity National Energy Action.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
"It's an utterly unsustainable situation," said Blanco, adding that she was ready to remain in the camp "at least for another night".
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
Obviously, $125,000 in unsecured credit-card debt with double-digit interest is unsustainable.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026
Thus language-games do not simply succeed, progress, pay, or prove their worth; they can also become unsustainable if the facts change.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
