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definitions

unsavory

[uhn-sey-vuh-ree]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR unsavory ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

not savory; tasteless or insipid: an unsavory meal.
unpleasant in taste or smell; distasteful.
unappealing or disagreeable, as a pursuit: Poor teachers can make education unsavory.
socially or morally objectionable or offensive: an unsavory past; an unsavory person.

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RELATED WORDS

distasteful, objectionable, shady, unpalatable, unpleasant, unappetizing, nasty, obnoxious, offensive, acid, bitter, bland, disagreeable, dull, flavorless, gross, icky, insipid, lousy, nauseating
Also especially British, un·sa·vour·y.

Origin of unsavory

Middle English word dating back to 1175–1225; see origin at un-1, savory1
Related formsun·sa·vor·i·ly, adverbun·sa·vor·i·ness, noun

Synonyms for unsavory

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR unsavory ON THESAURUS.COM
1. flat, unappetizing.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for unsavory

Contemporary Examples of unsavory

Historical Examples of unsavory

  • They did unsavory cooking over the open fire till their small supply of wood gave out.

    Home Fires in France

    Dorothy Canfield

  • I should not care to entrust my daughter or sister to the keeping of a man with my unsavory reputation.

    Nat Goodwin's Book

    Nat C. Goodwin

  • The street is and always has been narrow, and, from its proximity to the fish-market, is and always has been unsavory.

    London

    Walter Besant

  • Neither can be depended upon and generally both have unsavory reputations.

  • Poetry is truly an unsavory implement when it so demeans a smart officer to defer to a civilian.

Word Origin and History for unsavory
adj.

early 13c., "tasteless, insipid," from un- (1) "not" + savory (adj.). Meaning "unpleasant or disagreeable to the taste" is attested from late 14c.; of persons, from c.1400.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper