unpopular
Americanadjective
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not popular; disliked or ignored by the public or by persons generally.
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in disfavor with a particular person or group of persons.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unpopular
Explanation
When something is unpopular, it means most people don't like it, like a school lunch that nobody wants to eat or a TV show that nobody watches. Empty theaters and poor reviews indicate that a movie is unpopular. A politician with low approval ratings is unpopular and probably won't be reelected. Unpopular opinions are those that are not widely accepted or well-received. The word unpopular indicates a lack of favor or acceptance that can lead to rejection of products, ideas, and sometimes even people.
Vocabulary lists containing unpopular
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 leaders of the A.I. industries are extremely unpopular and make bad messengers for requesting this sort of access.
From Slate ● Oct. 14, 2026
And Zuckerberg is unpopular: last year, a Pew Research Center poll found that two-thirds of Americans had an unfavourable opinion of him.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
As an icebreaker, audience members are asked to submit their own unpopular opinions to be displayed on the screen for everyone to see.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026
"It's time to take responsibility for making bold choices, even unpopular ones," he said earlier this year.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
I put forth an alternative that I knew would be unpopular.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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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.
