unlikely
Americanadjective
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not likely to be or occur; improbable; marked by doubt.
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holding little prospect of success; unpromising; likely to fail.
He is an unlikely candidate for reelection.
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not ingratiating; objectionable.
adverb
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unlikely
First recorded in 1325–75, unlikely is from the Middle English word unlikli. See un- 1, likely
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.
See Examples For:
The committee concluded that the volrustomig combination was unlikely to reach either of the primary endpoints for the drug in the eVolve-Lung02 trial.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
Ballet flats are back in vogue, and that’s prompted some unlikely companies to hop on the bandwagon with their own riffs on the classic shoe silhouette.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
A rate rise next month looks increasingly unlikely, and that’s boosting stocks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Whatever the reason, the Blues are unlikely to suffer such a sudden slump again this season.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Large numbers of investment-grade companies in different countries and different industries were indeed unlikely to default on their debt at the same time.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Then the next game turned out to be even unlikelier.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 12, 2026
Soon, Gef appeared in an even unlikelier place: the British courts.
From National Geographic ● Sep. 19, 2023
Some of the suggested new tributes reach into unlikelier cultural realms.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2022
Pricier and bulkier than a Nike Fuelband or Fitbit and cluttered with more features, the Sport is unlikely to win over the quantified-exercise crowd, and the fancier models unlikelier still.
From Slate ● Dec. 18, 2015
If he's shamming—and unlikelier things have happened, now you mention it—the doctor finds him out.
From Nicky-Nan, Reservist by Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
Then foreigners tasted it, lost their minds and turned a condiment into the World Cup’s unlikeliest phenomenon.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
Balancing sorrow with self-deprecation, Maron covers childhood abuse, his father’s dementia, evacuating his home with three cats during the L.A. fires and becoming the unlikeliest of Swifties.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026
It is, according to bookmakers, the unlikeliest Super Bowl match-up of modern times.
From Barron's ● Feb. 8, 2026
The Estadio da Luz then erupted deep in injury time as Trubin turned the unlikeliest of heroes as he nodded in from a free-kick to send Benfica through.
From Barron's ● Jan. 28, 2026
It oftentimes happens that aggressively disposed animals, like cowardly men, are apt to try battle with the unlikeliest adversaries.
From The Human Side of Animals by Royal Dixon
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.
