unproductive

un·pro·duc·tive | \ ˌən-prə-ˈdək-tiv

How to pronounce unproductive (audio)

, -prō- \

Definition of unproductive

: not effective in bringing something about : not yielding results, benefits, or profits : not productive unproductive meetings unproductive strategies unproductive workers

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about unproductive

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of unproductive in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Around $170 million was paid to Liverpool for Brazilian forward Philippe Coutinho, whose unproductive time at the club came to end with a loan move to Bayern Munich after less than two years in Barcelona. — Matias Grez, CNN, "'More than a Club?' How FC Barcelona 'lost its soul'," 7 Aug. 2020 The roots of the economic crisis are complicated, but as Hannes Baumann explains in a recent paper, the Lebanese elite has for decades pursued a form of unproductive rentier capitalism. — Ryan Cooper, TheWeek, "Can Lebanon be saved?," 6 Aug. 2020 This is not a good time to join a new group or flaunt your opinions in public places, as disagreements are likely to be unproductive. — Magi Helena, oregonlive, "Horoscope for August 5, 2020: Gemini, entertain yourself on the cheap; Virgo, be nice at work," 5 Aug. 2020 Interguard, meanwhile, generates reports quantifying the amount of time workers spend on given websites and apps their companies deem unproductive. — Courtney Linder, Popular Mechanics, "Is Your Boss Spying on You While You Work from Home?," 4 June 2020 Acevedo said placing blame is unproductive while local police are working to keep citizens safe. — Dominick Mastrangelo, Washington Examiner, "'This is not Hollywood': Head of police chiefs association tells Trump to 'keep your mouth shut' about law enforcement," 3 June 2020 Those costs pile up as the contagion of traffic spreads, until swaths of the city are sick and unproductive. — Matt Simon, Wired, "Turns Out, Traffic Spreads Like the Coronavirus," 7 Apr. 2020 The cost of unproductive meetings comes to more than U.S. $399 billion annually. — Marie Kondo, Marie Claire, "Marie Kondo on How to Spark Joy in Your Career," 6 Apr. 2020 Yet agriculture accounts for less than 9% of GDP, which means that rural labour is still extremely unproductive. — The Economist, "Why China needs bigger farms," 11 Jan. 2018

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

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about unproductive

Dictionary Entries near unproductive

unproductive consumption

Statistics for unproductive

Last Updated

10 Aug 2020

Cite this Entry

“Unproductive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unproductive. Accessed 11 Aug. 2020.

Keep scrolling for more

Keep scrolling for more

WORD OF THE DAY

malaise

Listen to the pronunciation of malaise

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Test Your Vocabulary

Original Meanings Quiz

Which of the following is the earliest known sense of the word awe?

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.