as in unfit
lacking qualities (as knowledge, skill, or ability) required to do a job
an incompetent carpenter had built the deck, and the railings were loose already
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of incompetent
Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 26 Sep. 2025
Like in One Battle After Another, DiCaprio played buffoonish and vaguely incompetent, but Scorsese doesn’t weaponize his ignorance for laughs.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025
Though he was found incompetent because of his mental health issues, Chokr now is competent after treatment, is taking his medication and intends to do so to remain competent, Ayad wrote.
—Christina Hall, Freep.com, 25 Sep. 2025
The following December, Kelly was found to be incompetent to face the charges, according to court records.
—Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 25 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Noun
Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Laura Gonzalez-Marques found Grafe incompetent to stand trial in March.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 26 Sep. 2025
Like in One Battle After Another, DiCaprio played buffoonish and vaguely incompetent, but Scorsese doesn’t weaponize his ignorance for laughs.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025
Though he was found incompetent because of his mental health issues, Chokr now is competent after treatment, is taking his medication and intends to do so to remain competent, Ayad wrote.
—Christina Hall, Freep.com, 25 Sep. 2025
The following December, Kelly was found to be incompetent to face the charges, according to court records.
—Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 25 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incompetent
Adjective
-
And every year, a vast quantity is thrown away as unfit to eat.—
Maurice H. Decker,
Outdoor Life,
17 Sep. 2025
-
Lee would sometimes visit Anderson at the Highland Chateau health and rehabilitation center in Highland Park, where she had been relocated with some objection after her Surrey Avenue property was deemed unfit for human habitation.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Mix Materials The beauty in the unfitted kitchen aesthetic is found in its collected look.—
Patricia Shannon,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 May 2025
-
The venerable American clan at the center of the narrator’s reminiscences are wholly unfitted to the modern world and no longer endowed with the fortune that one of them brought home long ago on clipper ships.—
Daniel Akst,
WSJ,
2 Sep. 2022
Adjective
-
Jets history includes countless examples of defencemen who posted great numbers on the third pair but proved incapable of handling top-four competition.—
Murat Ates,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Apparently incapable of not making a bad situation worse, Arthur accuses Olivia of being lonely for Rafferty, not for him.—
Keith Phipps,
Vulture,
26 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
This place belongs to the Carver, a deranged butcher who hunts anything foolish enough to enter.—
Meredith G. White,
AZCentral.com,
25 Sep. 2025
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The area includes popular spots like Marrow Detroit restaurant and butcher shop, La Fonda Street and the temporarily closed Sister Pie.—
Susan Selasky,
Freep.com,
23 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
For more instant gratification, grab a muddler (or the back of a wooden spoon or the end of a rolling pin).—
The New York Times News Service Syndicate,
Denver Post,
19 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Incompetent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incompetent. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
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