disreputable

adjective

(ˌ)dis-ˈre-pyə-tə-bəl How to pronounce disreputable (audio)
Definition of disreputablenext
as in notorious
not respectable a disreputable Internet retailer that had a record of hundreds of complaints for shoddy merchandise and slow refunds

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of disreputable Thatcher’s Elle is trying to reconnect with her disreputable father while battling an evil stepmother and trying to avoid a brutal serial killer. — The Week Us, TheWeek, 27 July 2026 Methanol is sometimes added to mixed drinks at disreputable bars as a cheaper alternative to ethanol, but can cause severe poisoning or death. — ABC News, 17 July 2026 The cultural shift that turned horror cinema from a disreputable, rarely respected grind-house film genre into a billion-dollar-a-year mainstream business has done wonders for the genre’s overall quality. — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 29 May 2026 After Kent’s resignation, Republican hawks denounced him as a kook and a traitor to the cause, without touching on the delicate question of why Trump appointed such a disreputable figure in the first place. — Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for disreputable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disreputable
  1. notorious
  2. infamous
  3. shady
  4. criminal
  5. immoral
Adjective
  • One notorious case involved the English heavy metal group Judas Priest.
    — Jordana Rosenfeld, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Oct. 2026
  • When a missing kid who had been previously linked to the notorious serial killer Jurek Walter (Stephen Graham) reappears after several years, Jonah dusts off his badge.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of notorious
Adjective
  • His pathetic, dangerous charade reminds me of an infamous voter fraud case from 30 years ago.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Disney+ and Hulu have greenlit a reboot of Ryan Murphy‘s famous (and infamous) musical dramedy series.
    — Selome Hailu, Variety, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of infamous
Adjective
  • Both about power-mad blondes getting involved with the shadier side of the medical industrial complex, but Matt Hagen’s nanites worked, dammit!
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Many shady electronics companies are happy to sell you the wrong component for the wrong price.
    — Tim Stevens, ArsTechnica, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of shady
Adjective
  • The police spokesperson said Perez was taken into custody without incident and charged with menacing and criminal possession of a weapon.
    — Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The leader of one of Haiti’s most powerful criminal organizations said the Salvadorans were killed in territory controlled by Chen Mechan, an allied gang.
    — Widlore Mérancourt, Washington Post, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of criminal
Adjective
  • Convince people that an innocent person represents an existential threat, furnish them with a frightening conspiracy theory about an immoral enemy, and some may become willing to kill.
    — Maxwell Adler, Vanity Fair, 27 Oct. 2026
  • In those cases, your cause is so just that you are warranted to be immoral in protecting it.
    — Jordi Graupera, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of immoral

Browse Nearby Words

disrepairs
disreputable
disreputableness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Disreputable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disreputable. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of wraith

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

The Words of the Week - Oct. 30

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All