unlovely

adjective

un·​love·​ly ˌən-ˈləv-lē How to pronounce unlovely (audio)
: not likable : disagreeable, unpleasant
unloveliness noun

Examples of unlovely in a Sentence

Sunday night is often spoiled by the unlovely thought of having to go back to school or work the next morning. an unlovely but efficient little machine
Recent Examples on the Web The song is unlovely and jagged, the melody’s sweetness repeatedly punctured by the squawks of their habitual bickering. Washington Post Staff, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2024 From its inception, back in 2012, Mann’s relentless litigation has been marked out by an unlovely mixture of mendacity and egomania. The Editors, National Review, 9 Feb. 2024 The place is owned by Jabe Torrance (Michael Cullen), a mean man with an unlovely personality who’s just returned from having surgery in Memphis and seems to be dying. Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 31 July 2023 Perhaps her skepticism showed: A sketch of the conference speakers has the 43-year-old grim-faced beneath a wide, unlovely hat. Sarah Watling, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 May 2023 What Fernandez shows is fairly ordinary — an empty lot on a suburban bluff, with a cluster of unlovely apartments and passing cars in the background at the right and a vista looking out over a leafy neighborhood of private homes to a hazy mountain peak in the distance at the left. Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2022 Many were aghast at BMW i division’s fractal styling themes, embodied in the unlovely time-travelers iX and i7. Dan Neil, WSJ, 11 Aug. 2022 The parking lot was madness, the exterior was unlovely, and the back deck was heaven. BostonGlobe.com, 22 July 2022 Two years later, he is gone, though the movie spares us the unlovely particulars of his end. Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 24 June 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unlovely.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of unlovely was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near unlovely

Cite this Entry

“Unlovely.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unlovely. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

unlovely

adjective
un·​love·​ly ˌən-ˈləv-lē How to pronounce unlovely (audio)
ˈən-
: having no charm or appeal : disagreeable
an unlovely story about betrayal
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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