unholy
Americanadjective
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not holy; not sacred or hallowed.
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impious; sinful; wicked.
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Informal. dreadful; ungodly.
They got us out of bed at the unholy hour of three in the morning.
adjective
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not holy or sacred
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immoral or depraved
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informal outrageous or unnatural
an unholy alliance
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unholy
before 1000; Middle English; Old English unhālig (cognate with Dutch onheilig, Old Norse ūheilagr ). See un- 1, holy
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.
The so-called "unholy alliance" - a play on the Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity - is made up of Museveni, Kainerugaba, and the president's powerful brother and special adviser, Salim Saleh.
From BBC • Jan. 30, 2026
A God’s-eye view captures sparks and flames tearing a circle around his unholy play.
From Salon • Jan. 23, 2026
Another opponent, Lord Patten, branded the bill an "unholy legislative mess" that he said could lead to death becoming the "default solution to perceived suffering".
From BBC • Sep. 19, 2025
An unholy specimen, a building creature that is sufficiently weird, necessary, and profitable to wriggle to life in the city’s stifling landscape of land-use regulations: the double duplex.
From Slate • Jul. 31, 2025
“Britain and Russia, then. That unholy alliance will not succeed.”
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
