unhandsome

adjective

un·​hand·​some ˌən-ˈhan(t)-səm 

1

: not physically attractive : not beautiful : homely

2

old-fashioned + literary

a

: unbecoming, unseemly

… I have a very genuine dislike for all unhandsome dealings in money matters …

—Samuel Butler

b

: lacking in courtesy or taste : rude

I considered this one of the most unhandsome speeches ever made … I can scarce reconcile it to my notion of a gentleman …

—Robert Louis Stevenson

unhandsomely adverb

Synonyms of unhandsome

• ugly
• unpleasing
• hideous
• grotesque

Examples of unhandsome in a Sentence

a character actor with a distinctively craggy, unhandsome face

in an interview the free-spoken actor made some unhandsome remarks about his costars

Recent Examples on the Web

In the ’50s, almost all apparel sold in America was made in America, much of it in that blunt, unhandsome neighborhood halfway between Midtown and Chelsea, a patch of blocks less than a square mile, crammed daily with hundreds of thousands of workers. —Susan Dominus Photographs By Joshua Kissi Styled By Ian Bradley Sasha Weiss Photographs By Collier Schorr Styled By Jay Massacret Megan O’Grady Portrait By Mickalene Thomas and Racquel Chevremont Ligaya Mishan Photographs By Tina Barney, New York Times, 14 Oct. 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for unhandsome

• handsome
• hansom
• transom

Kids Definition

unhandsome

adjective

un·​hand·​some ˌən-ˈhan(t)-səm 

: not handsome: as

a

: not beautiful : homely

b

: unbecoming, unseemly

an unhandsome habit

c

: lacking in courtesy or taste

unhandsome language

unhandsomely adverb