unsavory
Americanadjective
-
not savory; tasteless or insipid.
an unsavory meal.
- Synonyms:
- unappetizing, flat
-
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.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unsavory
Middle English word dating back to 1175–1225; see origin at un- 1, savory 1
Explanation
Call something unsavory if it's unappetizing, tasteless, or morally offensive. Curdled sour milk is pretty unsavory, as are the dirty details of the latest political scandal. The adjective unsavory was formed by merging un, meaning “not,” with savory, meaning “pleasant, agreeable.” So if it's unsavory, it's unpleasant. First used to describe revolting tastes, unsavory now also applies to just about anything that figuratively leaves a bad taste in your mouth. Mobsters do all kinds of unsavory things to the people that cross them. So you probably shouldn't hang out with such unsavory characters.
Vocabulary lists containing unsavory
100 SAT Words Beginning with "U"
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The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
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We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball
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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.
But despite being an unsavory collection of criminals, Mr. Goode’s cast of characters could survive quite handsomely without gambling everything with each shipment of Fiji banded iguanas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Throughout the series, Mary becomes the catalyst for multiple unsavory characters from “Pride & Prejudice” to gain redemption.
From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2026
“I don’t think it’s a good idea to go on the hunt for old ladies,” one unsavory manager tells her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
The scene involves an unsavory routine on how to recognize a shoplifter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2026
As Reggie hands over his old clothes, Linton’s voice comes in: “He will be in with some very unsavory people.”
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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.
