untoward

[uhn-tawrd, -tohrd]

adjective

1. unfavorable or unfortunate.

   Untoward circumstances forced him into bankruptcy.

2. improper.

   untoward social behavior.

3. Archaic.,  froward; perverse.

untoward

/ ˌʌntəˈwɔːd, ʌnˈtəʊəd /

adjective

1. characterized by misfortune, disaster, or annoyance

2. not auspicious; adverse; unfavourable

3. unseemly or improper

4. out of the ordinary; out of the way

5. archaic,  refractory; perverse

6. obsolete,  awkward, ungainly, or uncouth

Other Word Forms

• untowardly adverb
• untowardness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of untoward¹

First recorded in 1520–30; un- ¹ + toward

Example Sentences

“I hope nothing untoward happens to him this time,” she thought.

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A police patrol investigated but found nothing untoward.

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“I just know,” she insists, “something untoward has happened.”

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His mum had checked his PC on several occasions and seen nothing untoward.

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There isn’t necessarily anything untoward about these arrangements.

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Related Words

• adverse 
• disturbing 
• perverse 
• unfortunate 
• unmanageable