unhappy
Americanadjective
-
sad; miserable; wretched.
Why is she so unhappy?
- Synonyms:
- distressed, cheerless, downcast, sorrowful
-
unfortunate; unlucky.
an unhappy incident.
- Synonyms:
- hapless
-
unfavorable; inauspicious.
an unhappy omen.
- Synonyms:
- unpropitious
-
infelicitous; unsuitable.
an unhappy choice of words.
- Synonyms:
- inapt, inappropriate
-
Archaic. causing trouble; reprehensible; troublesome.
adjective
-
not joyful; sad or depressed
-
unfortunate or wretched
an unhappy fellow
-
tactless or inappropriate
an unhappy remark
-
archaic unfavourable
Other Word Forms
- unhappily adverb
- unhappiness noun
Etymology
Origin of unhappy
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English: “causing misfortune, objectionable”; un- 1 + happy
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.
As part of her research, she asked dozens of 10 to 12-year-olds in the country to draw happy and unhappy people, then asked them to explain.
From BBC
"It starts with us and I know the fans can be unhappy with us but I think it's a good step for us."
From BBC
With Twenty Questions we discovered that no, she was not unhappy about the marriage; yes, she liked Flip very much.
From Literature
And Mutti too was as unhappy as I had ever seen her.
From Literature
But Charlie whooped and held one up, about two foot long, loud and unhappy.
From Literature
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.
