unemployment

American  

[uhn-em-ploi-muhnt] / ˌʌn ɛmˈplɔɪ mənt /

noun

1. the state of being unemployed, especially involuntarily.

   Automation poses a threat of unemployment for many unskilled workers.

2. the number of persons who are unemployed.

3. Informal. unemployment benefit.

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unemployment British  

/ ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪmənt /

noun

1. the condition of being unemployed

2. the number of unemployed workers, often as a percentage of the total labour force

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Usage

What does unemployment mean? Unemployment is the state of not having a paid job—of being unemployed. Unemployment is also commonly used in the context of economics to mean the total number of people unemployed, such as in a country, as in Unemployment is down this quarter, with thousands of new jobs having been created. The opposite of this is employment—the total number of people who are employed. Employment also commonly means the state of being employed. The word unemployment is sometimes used as a short and informal way of referring to an unemployment benefit, which is an allowance of money paid to unemployed workers, such as by the government. People receiving such a benefit are often said to be receiving unemployment. Example: Unemployment is extremely stressful when you go months without any job prospects. 

Other Word Forms

• antiunemployment
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of unemployment

First recorded in 1885–90; un- ¹ + employment

Explanation

Unemployment refers to not having a job. The more people have work, the less unemployment there is. When you're employed by someone, you work for them: employment is a job. Therefore, unemployment is the lack of a job. Economists often talk about how much unemployment there is and whether the unemployment rate is increasing or decreasing. If it's up, that's bad for the economy, because more people are out of work. Sometimes, the government provides unemployment benefits for people who have recently lost their jobs.

Example Sentences

In 2021, she became an administrative law judge with the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board, according to her campaign website.

From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026

Unemployment remains low at 4.3%, but there also aren’t as many workers available vying for jobs.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

Unemployment is up slightly for U.S.-born workers, and wage growth has slowed.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026

Unemployment fell to 4.9% in the three months to February, despite predictions it would remain unchanged at 5.2%.

From BBC • Apr. 21, 2026

Unemployment and subemployment combined now affect 43 percent of Hondurans.

From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario

Related Words

• bankruptcy
• collapse
• decline
• deflation
• downturn
• hard times
• inflation
• shakeout
• slide
• slump
• stagnation