unskilled

adjective

un·​skilled ˌən-ˈskild How to pronounce unskilled (audio)
1
: not skilled in a branch of work : lacking technical training
an unskilled worker
2
: not requiring skill
unskilled jobs
3
: marked by lack of skill
produced unskilled poems

Examples of unskilled in a Sentence

an unskilled handling of the facial features in the portrait explains why it is attributed to “school of Velázquez” and not to the master himself hired unskilled workers because they would work for lower wages
Recent Examples on the Web Thirty percent of the firms have openings for skilled workers, but 15% have unskilled opportunities available as well (there are 6 million employer firms). William Dunkelberg, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024 City officials have long struggled to improve water safety at public beaches, with their strong riptides, legions of unskilled swimmers and perennial lifeguard staffing shortages. Corey Kilgannon, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2024 Many mitigation opportunities such as forest preservation programs require land and unskilled labor, both of which are much cheaper in less wealthy countries. Rachel Glennerster, Foreign Affairs, 14 Feb. 2024 While many minimum wage workers are unskilled teens, the vast majority of workers who benefit from minimum wage hikes are over the age of 20, according to research by the Economic Policy Institute. Ali Martin, The Christian Science Monitor, 13 Feb. 2024 Many writers, especially in the journalistic sector, are almost certainly well intentioned but unskilled with advanced statistical tools such as Stata. Wilfred Reilly, National Review, 3 Jan. 2024 There’s a core of authentically devastating family experience and personal investment that saves Suncoast from its unskilled handling, giving this grief drama, coming-of-age combo a heart to counter its predictability. David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Jan. 2024 Large numbers of unskilled immigrants can depress wages in certain parts of the economy, at least for a time. David Lauter, Los Angeles Times, 19 Jan. 2024 Economists have debated the reasons for Engel’s Pause, but the leading theory is that early industrial factories depended on large quantities of unskilled and uneducated labor (in fact, many of these early factories employed lots of children). Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 16 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unskilled.' 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

1559, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of unskilled was in 1559

Dictionary Entries Near unskilled

Cite this Entry

“Unskilled.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unskilled. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

unskilled

adjective
un·​skilled ˌən-ˈskild How to pronounce unskilled (audio)
ˈən-
1
: not skilled
especially : not skilled in a branch of work : lacking mechanical training
an unskilled worker
2
: not requiring skill
unskilled jobs
3
: marked by lack of skill
an unskilled painting

More from Merriam-Webster on unskilled

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