unfair
Americanadjective
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not fair; not conforming to approved standards, as of justice, honesty, or ethics.
an unfair law;
an unfair wage policy.
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disproportionate; undue; beyond what is proper or fitting.
an unfair share.
adjective
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characterized by inequality or injustice
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dishonest or unethical
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unfair
First recorded before 900; 1705–15 unfair for def. 1; Middle English: “uncomely, ugly”; Old English unfæger; cognate with Old Norse ūfagr; un- 1 + fair 1
Explanation
If something's unfair, it's not just or equitable. If your brother carelessly broke your mother's favorite vase, it would be unfair for her to punish both of you. We all know that when things are fair, they're unbiased or they follow the rules. Unfair is the exact opposite, so an unfair ruling in court isn't based on principles of justice, and an unfair grade on your book report might be due to your English teacher's bias against graphic novels. The original meaning of this adjective was "not lovely" or "hideous," from the "beautiful" definition of fair.
Vocabulary lists containing unfair
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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.
She says it's unfair to put the criticism on Widdicombe, and says as time has gone on he feels less awkward, with comments online suggesting some fans are "warming to him".
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026
These were based on the jury’s verdict that Meta committed 43.9 million “willful violations” of New Mexico’s unfair business practices law from May 2010 through mid-August 2021.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
The jury found Meta liable last month for violating New Mexico’s unfair practices law.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
To help remedy unfair disparity between sentences, Congress created the U.S.
From Slate ● Oct. 18, 2026
Bat thought this was unfair, and also mean, considering that he was so worried, but before he could say anything, he heard Mom’s car turn in to the driveway.
From "A Boy Called Bat" by Elana K. Arnold
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
