indelicate

adjective in·del·i·cate \ (ˌ)in-ˈde-li-kət \

|Updated on: 23 Jul 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: indelicate in a Sentence

Definition of indelicate

: not delicate:

a (1) : lacking in or offending against propriety : improper

(2) : verging on the indecent : coarse

b : marked by a lack of feeling for the sensibilities of others : tactless

—

indelicately

adverb

—

indelicateness

noun

See indelicate defined for English-language learners

See indelicate defined for kids

Examples of indelicate in a Sentence

Many consider it indelicate to talk about such things in mixed company.
the company considered his indelicate handling of such a personal matter to be unprofessional

Recent Examples of indelicate from the Web

Reared in New York's indelicate political culture, Trump does not like to appear meek, using rallies and his Twitter account to lacerate rivals.

— paul schwartzman and josh dawsey, chicagotribune.com, "'It's burning people out': Trump aides endure public fury toward president's policies around D.C.," 9 July 2018
Reared in New York’s indelicate political culture, Trump does not like to appear meek, using rallies and his Twitter account to lacerate rivals.

— paul schwartzman, Washington Post, "‘Viciousness’: Trump aides endure public fury toward president’s policies," 9 July 2018
Reared in New York's indelicate political culture, Trump does not like to appear meek, using rallies and his Twitter account to lacerate rivals.

— author: paul schwartzman, josh dawsey, Anchorage Daily News, "'Viciousness': Trump aides endure public fury toward president's policies," 9 July 2018
But ugly stuff too: Tesla’s investor insurrection, thanks (in part) to Grimes’ Boyfriend’s indelicate earnings call comments.

— aarian marshall, WIRED, "This Week in the Future of Cars: Touch and Go," 11 May 2018
Is this an indelicate time to mention that the Ramblers beat a Tennessee team missing its shot-blocking center because of injury and beat a Kansas State team missing its top scorer and rebounder because of injury?

— steve rosenbloom, chicagotribune.com, "The natural next step in the Loyola story: NFL teams calling dibs on Sister Jean," 30 Mar. 2018
But an indelicate tweet published on the company's Twitter account said Papa John's drew more attention to the hate groups.

— grace schneider, The Courier-Journal, "John Schnatter stepping down as Papa John's CEO," 21 Dec. 2017
Acting Secretary Elaine Duke, another nonpolitical homeland expert, ran into trouble for indelicate comments in response to a question about one of the recent hurricanes, for instance.

— laura meckler, WSJ, "Trump Picks Kirstjen Nielsen for Homeland Security Secretary," 11 Oct. 2017
At the same time, the musician’s indelicate missives compel one to ask just what drove Mozart’s proclivity to fixate on things scatological.

— jonathan rosenberg, The Christian Science Monitor, "'Mozart: The Man Revealed' explores a life infused with as much drama as any opera," 8 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'indelicate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of indelicate

1742

in the meaning defined at sense a(1)

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

indelicate Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of indelicate

indecorous, improper, unseemly, unbecoming, indelicate mean not conforming to what is accepted as right, fitting, or in good taste. indecorous suggests a violation of accepted standards of good manners.

- indecorous behavior

improper applies to a broader range of transgressions of rules not only of social behavior but of ethical practice or logical procedure or prescribed method.