unsexy

adjective

un·​sexy ˌən-ˈsek-sē How to pronounce unsexy (audio)
unsexier; unsexiest
: not sexy : not sexually suggestive or appealing
a modest, unsexy dress
also : not generally attractive or appealing
… prefer their wine aged and dated, not bottled in an unsexy jug … Jaclyn Fierman
unsexily adverb
unsexiness noun

Examples of unsexy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Cottage cheese ice cream Health-minded, protein lovers on TikTok have rediscovered cottage cheese, the unsexy staple of sad 1970s diets. Emily Heil, Washington Post, 14 Dec. 2023 And what better way to teach humanity to use A.I. than through something as unsexy as a word processor? Charles Duhigg, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2023 Dalio started Bridgewater as a kind of consultancy for commodities, an asset class that had long been seen as unsexy. Tarpley Hitt, The New Yorker, 16 Nov. 2023 Over a two-decade career in private equity, Azra Kanji has built expertise in some of the unsexy corners of the dealmaking world, from risk mitigation to driver safety—like one deal for alcohol monitoring devices for DUI offenders. Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2023 But Franks is prepared to imagine forms of communication that go beyond unsexy infrastructure and antilittering campaigns. WIRED, 7 Oct. 2023 In the meantime those unsexy units have been humming along, boosted by higher interest rates and global transaction volumes. WSJ, 13 Sep. 2023 Millipedes do the unsexy yet essential work of keeping the forests from drowning in their dead. Corinne Purtill, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2023 What remained was the company’s police radio business, a steady-selling but unsexy product that many thought would also soon be replaced by smartphones. Bystephen Gandel, Fortune, 8 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unsexy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of unsexy was in 1959

Dictionary Entries Near unsexy

Cite this Entry

“Unsexy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unsexy. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

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