untimely
Americanadjective
-
not timely; not occurring at a suitable time or season; ill-timed or inopportune.
An untimely downpour stopped the game.
- Synonyms:
- unsuitable, inconvenient, inappropriate, unseasonable
-
happening too soon or too early; premature.
his untimely demise.
adverb
adjective
-
occurring before the expected, normal, or proper time
an untimely death
-
inappropriate to the occasion, time, or season
his joking at the funeral was most untimely
adverb
Other Word Forms
- untimeliness noun
Etymology
Origin of untimely
First recorded in 1150–1200, untimely is from the Middle English word untimliche. See un- 1, timely
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.
They added that Joshua came from "a loving family who are devastated by his killing and untimely death".
From BBC
“Whatever it was — sacks and untimely situations — we started really slow.”
From Los Angeles Times
Holiday has been revered by singers of all genres and eras since her untimely death at 44.
Last month, a report commissioned by Los Angeles County found that a general lack of planning, poor communication, understaffing and chaotic conditions contributed to untimely evacuation orders as the Eaton fire tore through Altadena.
From Los Angeles Times
Left with few answers about his untimely death and what led to it, Kruglov’s community doesn’t understand how something like this could have happened to someone like him.
From Salon
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.
