1
as in poisonous
bad for the well-being of the body
health inspectors shut down several food stands that were using tainted and unwholesome meat
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in corrupt
having or showing lowered moral character or standards
despite having been raised in such unwholesome environments as a brothel and a traveling circus, singer Edith Piaf rose to international stardom
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of unwholesome
But unlike Materialists, those movies—pictures like Leo McCarey’s The Awful Truth or Preston Sturges’ The Palm Beach Story—emerged in a time when Hollywood censors were keeping a close eye on movies’ ideology, determined to protect audiences from unwholesome influences.
—
Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 13 June 2025
By mid-afternoon the weather turned downright unwholesome.
—Arthur Grahame, Outdoor Life, 4 June 2025
Like its unwholesome protagonist, the film — and the roving camera of Vladislav Opelyants, shooting in gorgeously high-contrast black-and-white — is forever on the move, creating an immersive aesthetic experience that amounts to a big pile of nothing.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 20 May 2025
As for the place, its veneer of comfortable tourism doesn’t hide the air of something unwholesome, especially when female guests start randomly throwing up.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2024
In celebration of her return, everyone from comedian Melissa McCarthy, who’s playing the conniving nemesis of King Triton, to film historians, are taking the opportunity to pay tribute to the legendary drag queen who inspired Ursula’s unwholesome ways: Divine.
—Elaina Patton, NBC News, 26 May 2023
There was something indefinably unwholesome about him.
—Ian McEwan, The New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2022
This syndrome originally surfaced in 1926, when residents of Haverhill, Massachusetts drank unwholesome milk and suffered soaring temps, aching joints, and skin lesions ranging from flat, red spots to papules, pustules, and blisters—the same telltale features earlier linked to bites.
—Claire Panosian Dunavan, Discover Magazine, 28 Feb. 2018
Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 13 June 2025
By mid-afternoon the weather turned downright unwholesome.
—Arthur Grahame, Outdoor Life, 4 June 2025
Like its unwholesome protagonist, the film — and the roving camera of Vladislav Opelyants, shooting in gorgeously high-contrast black-and-white — is forever on the move, creating an immersive aesthetic experience that amounts to a big pile of nothing.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 20 May 2025
As for the place, its veneer of comfortable tourism doesn’t hide the air of something unwholesome, especially when female guests start randomly throwing up.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2024
In celebration of her return, everyone from comedian Melissa McCarthy, who’s playing the conniving nemesis of King Triton, to film historians, are taking the opportunity to pay tribute to the legendary drag queen who inspired Ursula’s unwholesome ways: Divine.
—Elaina Patton, NBC News, 26 May 2023
There was something indefinably unwholesome about him.
—Ian McEwan, The New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2022
This syndrome originally surfaced in 1926, when residents of Haverhill, Massachusetts drank unwholesome milk and suffered soaring temps, aching joints, and skin lesions ranging from flat, red spots to papules, pustules, and blisters—the same telltale features earlier linked to bites.
—Claire Panosian Dunavan, Discover Magazine, 28 Feb. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unwholesome
Adjective
-
The poisonous mushrooms can look and taste similar to edible ones.—
Tim Fang,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
-
That provides them with some protection against eating the poisonous ones.—
Joan Morris,
Mercury News,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Rooting out corrupt generals and criminal networks could take months, or even years.—
Dexter Filkins,
New Yorker,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Certainly, part of the way to improve Venezuela and to improve the Western Hemisphere and improve the lives of Americans is to get their very corrupt 25 years in decline, oil industry back going again.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
11 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The change comes amid concerns about fireworks causing unhealthful air.—
Rong-Gong Lin II,
Los Angeles Times,
19 June 2025
-
Health professionals encourage people to use lean cuts of meat because most of the fat in animal products is unhealthful saturated fat, which can raise the risk of heart disease and cancer.—
Bethany Thayer,
Detroit Free Press,
22 June 2024
Adjective
-
The company acknowledges that direct recycling will not replace chemical methods entirely, particularly for mixed or degraded end-of-life batteries.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Bamberger, often regarded as a maverick, proved that degraded land could be revived.—
Lana Ferguson,
Dallas Morning News,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Historically America’s lawmakers addressed the human and environmental impacts of the Industrial Revolution’s transformational technology only after rivers ran with toxic chemicals and mistreated workers picketed.—
Krista Kafer,
Denver Post,
25 Jan. 2026
-
One of the furthest‑along examples is a one‑time experimental gene therapy called AMT‑130, which is delivered directly into the brain to lower levels of the toxic huntingtin protein.—
William A. Haseltine,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The rest of us will sit here with Belichick, sick to our stomachs.—
Dave Hyde,
Sun Sentinel,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Now, the fear is getting sick or stuck far from home.—
Christopher Elliott,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
An unhealthy gut microbiome is also linked to a variety of health imbalances, like Alzheimer’s disease and other types of inflammation throughout the body.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
23 Jan. 2026
-
Lifestyle factors can include tobacco use, alcohol and an unhealthy diet.—
Virginia Barreda,
Des Moines Register,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The canister flooded the family’s vehicle with noxious gas.—
Hannah Fingerhut,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Jan. 2026
-
The lagoon is the most biologically diverse estuary on the nation’s east coast, but the manatees, birds and fish that call it home are suffering dramatically from the death of seagrass and the abundance of noxious algae that thrive on polluted water.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
11 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unwholesome.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unwholesome. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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