unworthy
Americanadjective
-
not worthy; lacking worth or excellence.
- Antonyms:
- commendable, admirable, deserving
-
beneath the dignity (usually followed byof ).
behavior unworthy of a king.
-
of a kind not worthy (often followed byof ).
- Synonyms:
- ignoble, unsuitable, unfit, unseemly
-
not of adequate merit or character.
- Synonyms:
- ignoble, unsuitable, unfit, unseemly
-
not commendable or creditable.
-
not deserving.
noun
-
unworthies
plural
adjective
-
(often foll by of) not deserving or worthy
-
(often foll by of) beneath the level considered befitting (to)
that remark is unworthy of you
-
lacking merit or value
-
(of treatment) not warranted or deserved
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of unworthy
Middle English word dating back to 1200–50; see origin at un- 1, worthy
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.
See Examples For:
Janson, the author of the “History of Art” textbook, first published in 1962, implied that the regionalist painter was unworthy of scholarly attention.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
It has now been six years since the two men spoke, with Ryu going into seclusion and Ken selling out, hawking products like Duracell while signing up for gimmicky bouts unworthy of his talent.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
Honour your joy, do not shy away from the good that is trying to reach you, do not convince yourself that you are unworthy of it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
"Everything, from the minute you cross their threshold, is that you're unworthy to be a mother and we're taking your baby from you," Marion said.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
Did that make him unworthy to lead a legion of Roman ghosts?
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
Hollow-eyed, gaunt, gorgeously ravaged – Mourinho was already in the habit of using his increasingly odd post-match press conferences to rail against the moles, traitors, cowards and unworthies inside his own dressing room.
From The Guardian ● Dec. 17, 2015
These unworthies were slammed for their books, which he declared “rubbish” and “awful.”
From New York Times ● Sep. 26, 2012
Those two unworthies turned up once again, as related in the volume entitled "The Rover Boys Under Canvas."
From The Rover Boys in the Land of Luck Stirring Adventures in the Oil Fields by Edward Stratemeyer
These two unworthies had done their best to get on friendly terms with some of the girls, but had been snubbed in such a manner that it made them much crestfallen.
From The Rover Boys at Big Horn Ranch The Cowboys' Double Round-Up by Edward Stratemeyer
Insensibly, she branched into reminiscence, telling caustic histories of these Leicestershire unworthies, who were all unknown to Susan; and the girl hardly listened, sitting with her cheek on her hand and a dreaming brow.
From Barnaby A Novel by R. Ramsay
In the qualities of a ruler he was conspicuously deficient; always dependent on others, he ever inclined to the unworthier master.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 10 "Echinoderma" to "Edward" by Various
Ah! that passage of childhood, what a void it makes in the growing heart; and how quietly its place is filled by unworthier influences.
From The Doctor's Daughter by [pseud.] Vera
The title-page gives a London publisher as well as an Anglo-Athenian one, and Mrs. Johnstone benevolently adapted her labours to her countrywomen and the unworthier Southrons alike.
From Old Cookery Books and Ancient Cuisine by William Carew Hazlitt
The difference is, that in the truly great the unworthier side of nature is viewed as unworthy—is fought against and banished like the plague.
From The Life, Letters and Work of Frederic Leighton Volume I by Mrs. Russell Barrington
The obstinate calumny of his scepticism served as a pretext to the King's conscience for the unworthier instinct of personal dislike.
From Sir Walter Ralegh A Biography by W. (William) Stebbing
Dare to profane with his unworthiest hand that.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
You're letting the pettiest and unworthiest thing in you—a twisted instinct—consume all that's vital and fine.
From The Tyranny of Weakness by Paul Stahr
If I profane with my unworthiest hand This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this,— My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.
From Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
For presently through the handful of pines, red-stemmed and resinous in the sunset, there came the jingle of bit and stirrup, to interrupt the unworthiest thoughts in which the insulted lady had yet indulged.
From The Shadow of a Man by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung
I am the unablest adviser of a thousand, the unworthiest of ten thousand; yet I hope I may presume to assert what follows without just offence.
From The Simple Cobler of Aggawam in America by Nathaniel Ward
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
