nondescript

adjective

non·​de·​script ˌnän-di-ˈskript 

1

: belonging or appearing to belong to no particular class or kind : not easily described

… a nondescript mixture of styles in the worst possible taste.

—George Bernard Shaw

2

: lacking distinctive or interesting qualities : dull, drab

Their performance was disappointingly nondescript.

nondescript noun

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How Nondescript Was Formed

It is relatively easy to describe the origins of nondescript (and there's a hint in the first part of this sentence). Nondescript was formed by combining the prefix non- (meaning "not") with descriptus,the past participle of the Latin verb describere, meaning "to describe." It is no surprise, then, that when the word was adopted in the late 17th century by English speakers, it was typically applied to something (such as a genus or species) that had not yet been described. Other descriptive descendants of describere in English include describe, description, and descriptive itself, as well as the rare philosophical term descriptum ("something that is described").

Synonyms

• beige
• characterless
• faceless
• featureless
• indistinctive
• neutral
• noncommittal
• vanilla

Examples of nondescript in a Sentence

I work in one of the nondescript office buildings downtown.

Their performance was disappointingly nondescript.

Recent Examples on the Web

Officer Tate Mills — in the same nondescript clothing as Tillman, plus a baseball cap — got out of the unmarked pickup parked behind Jennings’ Mercedes. —Julia Coin, Charlotte Observer, 3 Apr. 2024

From the outside, the Center Theatre Group headquarters, a nondescript building across the street from the Music Center, is spectacularly unimpressive, the kind of place your mind wouldn’t even register as existing. —Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 1 Apr. 2024

With a separate dining room and caterer specializing in vegetarian cuisine, the adult day program brings a taste of the subcontinent to a nondescript suburban office park. —Justin Wm. Moyer, Washington Post, 25 Mar. 2024

Behind the graffitied door of a nondescript Eastern Market warehouse, just steps away from the city’s longest standing meat markets, is Midnight Temple, a trove of Indian traditions, both culinary and otherwise. —Detroit Free Press, 6 Mar. 2024

But other items that were stolen were not nearly of the same caliber: a nondescript Chinese metal vase; a fairly ordinary bronze eagle from atop a flagpole; and five minor sketches by Degas. —Tom Mashberg, New York Times, 18 Mar. 2024

Several years of living in a sleek if nondescript penthouse in the heart of Bologna, Italy, left architect Laura Gasparini and her family desiring a home with more room and character. —Rachel Gallaher, Robb Report, 16 Mar. 2024

The bus looks nondescript on the exterior — situated against the backdrop of an Idaho field and a natural rock wall. —Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 31 Jan. 2024

Yet another wrinkle is that the chemical signatures of some materials—table sugar and some plastic explosives, for instance—are so remarkably nondescript as to make distinguishing one from another impossible. —IEEE Spectrum, 7 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

non- + Latin descriptus, past participle of describere to describe

First Known Use

1789, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

nondescript

adjective

non·​de·​script ˌnän-di-ˈskript 

: belonging or appearing to belong to no particular class or kind : not easily described

nondescript noun