unskillful

[ uhn-skil-fuhl ]
See synonyms for unskillful on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. not skillful; clumsy or bungling.

Origin of unskillful

1
1350–1400; 1555–65 for current sense; Middle English unskylful unreasonable. See un-1, skillful
  • Also especially British, un·skil·ful .

Other words for unskillful

Other words from unskillful

  • un·skill·ful·ly, adverb
  • un·skill·ful·ness, noun

Words Nearby unskillful

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use unskillful in a sentence

  • In short, the conservatives were unfortunate, because they were unskillful and imprudent.

  • If the teacher is unskillful or lazy the remedy for poor recitations usually is, "Take the same lesson for to-morrow."

    The Recitation | George Herbert Betts
  • In unskillful hands the frail dugout would surely have been wrecked or upset.

    Travels in Alaska | John Muir
  • Thus the unskillful player had to root for it, while the boys, being called together, encircled him and jeered.

    Revisiting the Earth | James Langdon Hill
  • Mollie and Betty, the two best skaters, rather hung back, letting the more unskillful Amy and Grace lead the way.