unconscionable

adjective

un·con·scio·na·ble | \ ˌən-ˈkän(t)-sh(ə-)nə-bəl

Definition of unconscionable

1a : shockingly unfair or unjust unconscionable sales practices

b : excessive, unreasonable found an unconscionable number of defects in the car

2 : not guided or controlled by conscience : unscrupulous an unconscionable villain

Other Words from unconscionable Synonyms & Antonyms When Do You Use unconscionable? More Example Sentences Learn More about unconscionable

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Other Words from unconscionable

unconscionability \ ˌən-ˌkän(t)-sh(ə-)nə-ˈbi-lə-tē

\ noun

unconscionableness \ ˌən-ˈkän(t)-sh(ə-)nə-bəl-nəs

\ noun

unconscionably \ ˌən-ˈkän(t)-sh(ə-)nə-blē

\ adverb

When Do You Use unconscionable?

Something that can't be done in good conscience is unconscionable, and such acts can range from betraying a confidence to mass murder. For a five-syllable word, unconscionable is actually quite common. This is partly because it isn't always used very seriously; so, for example, a critic is free to call a fat new book "an unconscionable waste of trees". In law, an unconscionable contract is one that, even though it was signed by both parties, is so ridiculous that a judge will just throw it out.

Examples of unconscionable in a Sentence

They have had to endure unconscionable delays. an unconscionable number of errors for an important government report

Recent Examples on the Web

Newspapers like the Gazette do vital work, and our thoughts are with them amid this unconscionable tragedy. — Catherine Rentz, baltimoresun.com, "What they're saying about the fatal shooting at Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis," 29 June 2018 So awful that my colleagues still don't understand their unconscionable silence has become a green light for would-be shooters, who perceive inaction as endorsement. — Ruth Bruno, courant.com, "What They're Saying About The Maryland Newsroom Shooting," 28 June 2018 Mom called me crying over this unconscionable threat to losing nursing home care desperately needed. — Tina Burnside And Darran Simon, CNN, "Tens of thousands of Louisiana residents could lose Medicaid benefits," 9 May 2018 That’s unconscionable — and we at Planned Parenthood won’t stand for it. — Cecile Richards, Time, "Cecile Richards: 'Reproductive Justice and Immigrant Justice Are Part of the Same Fight'," 14 Feb. 2018 For a life to be taken when something is preventable is unconscionable to me. — Ashley Halsey Iii, The Washington Post, chicagotribune.com, "10 years later, thousands of risky air bags are still on the road," 23 Apr. 2018 And then the other guy who’s been accused of doing some unconscionable s---. — Tim Rohan, SI.com, "Michael, Murray and ... OJ? Ahmad Rashad Has Kept His Celeb Friends Close—Most of Them, Anyway," 29 June 2018 How can a government treat its own people with such unconscionable callousness? — Mark Sappenfield, The Christian Science Monitor, "The costs of liberty," 15 June 2018

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

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The first known use of unconscionable was in 1565

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More Definitions for unconscionable

unconscionable

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of unconscionable

formal

: extremely bad, unfair, or wrong

: going far beyond what is usual or proper

See the full definition for unconscionable in the English Language Learners Dictionary

unconscionable

adjective

un·con·scio·na·ble | \ ˌən-ˈkän-chə-nə-bəl

Legal Definition of unconscionable

: unreasonably unfair to one party, marked by oppression, or otherwise unacceptably offensive to public policy an unconscionable clause finds the contract…to have been unconscionable at the time it was made — Uniform Commercial Code — compare conscionable