unemployment

noun

un·​em·​ploy·​ment ˌən-im-ˈplȯi-mənt 

1

: the state of being unemployed : involuntary idleness of workers

also : the rate of such unemployment

2

: unemployment compensation

Examples of unemployment in a Sentence

My unemployment lasted about six months.

Unemployment has been increasing for months.

The current unemployment rate is six percent.

Recent Examples on the Web

Last year, the unemployment rate hit 37.6% for Black South Africans, while 7.9% of Whites were without a job. —Bart Jansen, USA Today, 22 May 2025

The state's unemployment rate was up three-tenths of a percentage point year over year. —Lucas Dufalla, Arkansas Online, 21 May 2025

The unemployment rate remains low, and the labor market is at or near maximum employment. —Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 May 2025

The tariffs will shave 0.7 percentage points off U.S. economic growth this year and increase the unemployment rate — now a low 4.2% — by nearly 0.4 percentage points. —Anne D'innocenzio, Chicago Tribune, 19 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1789, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing unemployment

• anti-unemployment
• unemployment compensation
• unemployment insurance

Rhymes for unemployment

• preemployment
• redeployment
• reemployment
• deployment
• employment
• enjoyment
• underemployment

Kids Definition

unemployment

noun

un·​em·​ploy·​ment ˌən-im-ˈplȯi-mənt 

: the state of being out of work