unsuccessful
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- unsuccessfully adverb
- unsuccessfulness noun
Etymology
Origin of unsuccessful
First recorded in 1610–20; un- 1 + successful
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.
The war came as the relationship between India and China had been souring over border tensions and meetings to resolve the disputes had been unsuccessful.
From BBC
Hansen, the Danish analyst, argued that any campaign to "have" Greenland - short of military action - would be unsuccessful as long as the population of Greenland opposes the idea.
From BBC
The company also made an unsuccessful bid in 2024 to buy French electrical components maker Rexel after the target rejected the offer.
From Barron's
By her senior year, local companies attended campus career fairs, but she was unsuccessful when applying to corporate jobs outside of the region.
Efforts to break a deadlock in 2025 over plans for a new European fighter jet have been unsuccessful, a German government spokesman told AFP on Wednesday.
From Barron's
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.
