unprofessional
Americanadjective
-
not professional; not pertaining to or characteristic of a profession.
-
at variance with or contrary to professional standards or ethics; not befitting members of a profession, as language, behavior, or conduct.
-
not belonging to a profession; nonprofessional.
-
not done with professional competence, as a play staged or an opera performed by amateurs; amateurish.
-
Sports. nonprofessional.
noun
adjective
-
contrary to the accepted code of conduct of a profession
-
amateur
-
not belonging to or having the required qualifications for a profession
Other Word Forms
- unprofessionalism noun
- unprofessionally adverb
Etymology
Origin of unprofessional
First recorded in 1800–10; un- 1 + professional
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.
“To put it bluntly,” Jackson continued, “the court could be ushering in an era of unprofessional and unsafe medical care administered by effectively unsupervised healthcare providers.”
From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026
The panel concluded his conduct was "clearly unprofessional" and involved attempts to gain an inappropriate level of familiarity with pupils.
From BBC • Mar. 12, 2026
“Allow your boss to be the unprofessional one,” she says.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 28, 2026
Still, nothing was as odd as Bondi’s performance, which was unprofessional and combative.
From Salon • Feb. 13, 2026
“She has been completely unprofessional, that’s what’s happened. After all our efforts. After the advertisement we placed in the Times!”
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
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.
