unsuccessful
adjective
un·suc·cess·ful
ˌən-sək-ˈses-fəl 
: not successful : not meeting with or producing success
Synonyms
Examples of unsuccessful in a Sentence
His last novel was unsuccessful.
an unsuccessful attempt to fix the faucet ourselves
Recent Examples on the Web
Baffert, who has had no violations in any state since the 2021 Derby, and Zedan filed numerous suits to overturn the disqualification of Medina Spirit and suspension of Baffert, but were unsuccessful.
—
John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Lawsuits accusing Trump of violating the emoluments clauses in the Constitution during his presidency were unsuccessful.
—Erin Mansfield, USA TODAY, 18 Apr. 2024
Attempts to reach him Tuesday evening were unsuccessful.
—Praveena Somasundaram, Washington Post, 17 Apr. 2024
The report filed Monday covers the period that ended March 31, so the final tab for the unsuccessful campaign will almost certainly be higher, if only because the period does not cover Election Day.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 16 Apr. 2024
Upon arrival, police were told the man had left the home and officials began a search for the suspect, which was unsuccessful.
—Kira Caspers, The Arizona Republic, 16 Apr. 2024
Rayner said just one-fourth of the boxes house a bluebird, and half their nests are unsuccessful, victims of predators like sparrows, snakes and raccoons.
—Jennifer Dixon, Detroit Free Press, 15 Apr. 2024
After many unsuccessful attempts, including with members of the famous Italian filmmaking De Laurentiis family in 2008, the project needed a new vision.
—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 15 Apr. 2024
These moves follow the unsuccessful merger with the Sony Group Corporation‘s Indian unit in January.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024
John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Lawsuits accusing Trump of violating the emoluments clauses in the Constitution during his presidency were unsuccessful.
—Erin Mansfield, USA TODAY, 18 Apr. 2024
Attempts to reach him Tuesday evening were unsuccessful.
—Praveena Somasundaram, Washington Post, 17 Apr. 2024
The report filed Monday covers the period that ended March 31, so the final tab for the unsuccessful campaign will almost certainly be higher, if only because the period does not cover Election Day.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 16 Apr. 2024
Upon arrival, police were told the man had left the home and officials began a search for the suspect, which was unsuccessful.
—Kira Caspers, The Arizona Republic, 16 Apr. 2024
Rayner said just one-fourth of the boxes house a bluebird, and half their nests are unsuccessful, victims of predators like sparrows, snakes and raccoons.
—Jennifer Dixon, Detroit Free Press, 15 Apr. 2024
After many unsuccessful attempts, including with members of the famous Italian filmmaking De Laurentiis family in 2008, the project needed a new vision.
—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 15 Apr. 2024
These moves follow the unsuccessful merger with the Sony Group Corporation‘s Indian unit in January.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unsuccessful.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near unsuccessful
Cite this Entry
“Unsuccessful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unsuccessful. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
unsuccessful
adjective
un·suc·cess·ful
ˌən(t)-sək-ˈses-fəl
: not successful : not having or producing success
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