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
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
10 June 2026
Pieces’ acting and writing are ridiculous and often incompetent, though the film is notably not lacking in style.
—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 June 2026
Bruce Jenkins,
San Francisco Chronicle,
18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Adjective
This followed a previous May hearing for his state charges where the judge had ruled Brown incompetent to stand trial.
—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
10 June 2026
Pieces’ acting and writing are ridiculous and often incompetent, though the film is notably not lacking in style.
—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 June 2026
Noun
The Dodgers reached the pinnacle honestly, in a capitalistic structure that properly hands no favors to the incompetent.
—
Bruce Jenkins,
San Francisco Chronicle,
18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incompetent
Adjective
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There are worse strategies, but perhaps the unfit 18-year-old can’t do it all himself.
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The plan to buy large warehouses unfit for human habitation and spend millions more to convert them to prisons sparked nationwide backlash and pointed resistance in Social Circle and Oakwood.
Noun
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The Muses were meant for the butcher two autumns ago, but no one had the heart to lure them onto the trailer.
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Independent butchers are rare these days, as chain grocery stores with in-house butchers have become more prevalent.
Adjective
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Mix Materials The beauty in the unfitted kitchen aesthetic is found in its collected look.
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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.
Noun
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For more instant gratification, grab a muddler (or the back of a wooden spoon or the end of a rolling pin).
Adjective
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The major platforms, Ringelstein argued, are simply incapable of doing what Zigazoo does — not unwilling, but structurally unable.
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Facing a right-handed pitcher on a team completely incapable of holding runners, Cox just stood there.
Cite this Entry
“Incompetent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incompetent. Accessed 27 Jun. 2026.
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