unprofitable

adjective

un·​prof·​it·​able ˌən-ˈprä-fə-tə-bəl 

-ˈpräf-tə-bəl

: not profitable : producing no gain, good, or result

an unprofitable venture

unprofitableness noun

unprofitably

ˌən-ˈprä-fə-tə-blē 

-ˈpräf-tə-bəl

adverb

Synonyms

• abortive
• barren
• bootless
• empty
• fruitless
• futile
• ineffective
• ineffectual
• inefficacious
• otiose
• profitless
• unavailing
• unproductive
• unsuccessful
• useless
• vain

Examples of unprofitable in a Sentence

an unprofitable effort to find the information

Recent Examples on the Web

Ongoing Profitability Issues: Despite this growth, Upstart remains unprofitable, with a $128 million operating loss over the past four quarters, equating to a -20.4% operating margin. —Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025

This is a clear situation of something that is often seen in activist campaigns – a core business that is hugely profitable but whose profits are being used to fund an unprofitable non-core business. —Kenneth Squire, CNBC, 12 Apr. 2025

There is also the issue of market forces, which appear to make the production of certain drugs unprofitable for medical corporations. —William Jones, USA Today, 28 Mar. 2025

This race to the bottom leaves providers locked into unprofitable agreements. —Marek Niedzwiedz, Forbes, 19 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unprofitable

• profitable

Kids Definition

unprofitable

adjective

un·​prof·​it·​able ˌən-ˈpräf-ət-ə-bəl 

-ˈpräf-tə-bəl,

ˈən-

: not profitable

unprofitably

-blē 

adverb