unprofitable
Americanadjective
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being without profit; not showing or turning a profit.
a series of unprofitable ventures.
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pointless or futile.
an unprofitable three years in a routine job.
adjective
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not making a profit
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not fruitful or beneficial
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unprofitable
1275–1325; Middle English. See un- 1, profitable
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.
If banks pull back on providing loans because they become unprofitable, companies will have less capital available to them to grow their businesses and consumers will have a more difficult time borrowing money to spend.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
It stated that all five New Zealand provinces were cumulatively unprofitable across the past six years, with current holders the Hurricanes posting a loss of $1.4m in 2023 and almost $2m in 2025.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
A transcript from FactSet picked that word up as “infructuous,” which means fruitless or unprofitable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
Among his best-known reforms were a broad programme to privatise unprofitable state-owned enterprises, the privatisation of urban housing and the promotion of home ownership.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
The group’s current president, Carrie Chapman Catt, agreed, calling the protesters “unwise and unprofitable to the cause.”
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
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.
