unbalanced

[uhn-bal-uhnst]

adjective

1. not balanced balanced or not properly balanced. balanced.

2. lacking steadiness and soundness of judgment.

3. mentally disordered; deranged.

   Synonyms: irrational, unsound, disturbed

4. (of an account) not adjusted; not brought to an equality of debits and credits.

5. Football.,  of or relating to an offensive line formation having more than three linemen on one side of the center.

unbalanced

/ ʌnˈbælənst /

adjective

1. lacking balance

2. irrational or unsound; erratic

3. mentally disordered or deranged

4. biased; one-sided

   unbalanced reporting

5. (in double-entry book-keeping) not having total debit balances equal to total credit balances

6. electronics (of signals or circuitry) not symmetrically disposed about earth or zero reference potential

Word History and Origins

Origin of unbalanced¹

First recorded in 1640–50; un- ¹ + balanced

Example Sentences

The oil market is becoming increasingly unbalanced with global inventories continuing to climb and an even larger surplus expected this year, the International Energy Agency said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

An increasingly unbalanced economy also changes the way economic weakness is reflected in data.

Read more on Barron's

He also said that figure had been widely misinterpreted as 9,000 grooming gang cases and had led to "unbalanced reporting".

Read more on BBC

The oil market is becoming increasingly unbalanced with global inventories continuing to climb and an even larger surplus expected this year, the International Energy Agency said in its closely watched monthly report.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

When professors are concentrated at one extreme, a department isn’t only unbalanced—it’s incompetent.

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Related Words

• irregular 
• lopsided 
• top-heavy 
• unequal 
• uneven 
• unstable 
• unsteady 
• wobbly