unsafe

adjective

un·​safe ˌən-ˈsāf 

unsafer; unsafest

: not safe: such as

a

: able or likely to cause harm, damage, or loss

water that is unsafe to drink

unsafe driving habits

unsafe levels of lead

b

: not giving protection from danger, harm, or loss

an unsafe vehicle

unsafe working conditions

c

: not protected from danger, harm, or loss

feeling frightened and unsafe

d

: likely to take risks : not careful

unsafe drivers

Synonyms of unsafe

• dangerous
• hazardous
• risky
• perilous

Examples of unsafe in a Sentence

workers are forbidden from engaging in unsafe activities on company time

people who have a record of being unsafe drivers usually have to pay higher insurance premiums

Recent Examples on the Web

Alterra turns clinicians’ assessments into scoring criteria and rewards used in reinforcement learning, which encourages models to repeat stronger decisions and avoid behaviors experts have flagged as unsafe. — Wen Shao, Fortune, 10 Nov. 2026

For reasons ranging from understandable financial and logistical challenges to less defensible neglect, property owners have allowed some of these sheds to serve as a permanent substitute for addressing unsafe building façades. — Ahmed Tigani, New York Daily News, 10 Nov. 2026

But both the lawsuits and the company’s response focus on blatantly harmful content, not accurate health advice that can still be unsafe. — Jessica Fishman, STAT, 10 Nov. 2026

The takeaway is that people make mistakes, not that trains are unsafe. — Eric D. Goodman, Baltimore Sun, 10 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1597, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unsafe

• vouchsafe
• chafe
• safe
• waif