1
as in inappropriate
not appropriate for a particular occasion or situation
an inapt but well-meaning attempt to inject some humor into the proceedings
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unfit
lacking qualities (as knowledge, skill, or ability) required to do a job
a recruit who was utterly inapt for most soldierly duties, so he spent most of his time playing in the army band
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of inapt
The precedent is inapt, not least because the media landscape then was different with far fewer news sources.
—
The Wall Street Journal, Twin Cities, 25 July 2025
Beyond the application of arguably inapt legal and regulatory standards, technical and operational challenges may likewise hinder deAI adoption.
—Charlyn Ho, Forbes, 15 Mar. 2025
The result invites obvious yet not inapt comparisons to the work of Terrence Malick, but Bentley’s film—for all its crystalline imagery, its vision of Grainier’s home as a fallen Eden, and its air of metaphysical wonderment—unfolds in a more dramatically direct, compacted register.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2025
The visual flair peaks in the first episode, along with the series’ shallow, if not necessarily inapt, insight into life in this particular time and place.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Jan. 2025
The Wall Street Journal, Twin Cities, 25 July 2025
Beyond the application of arguably inapt legal and regulatory standards, technical and operational challenges may likewise hinder deAI adoption.
—Charlyn Ho, Forbes, 15 Mar. 2025
The result invites obvious yet not inapt comparisons to the work of Terrence Malick, but Bentley’s film—for all its crystalline imagery, its vision of Grainier’s home as a fallen Eden, and its air of metaphysical wonderment—unfolds in a more dramatically direct, compacted register.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2025
The visual flair peaks in the first episode, along with the series’ shallow, if not necessarily inapt, insight into life in this particular time and place.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Jan. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inapt
Adjective
-
There are significant worries that AI can readily go off the rails or otherwise dispense unsuitable or even egregiously inappropriate mental health advice.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
In April 2025, a tipster submitted an online report alleging an inappropriate relationship between Gilkey-Meisegeier and the student.—
Alec Johnson,
jsonline.com,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Apparently, the Meyers in Long Beach were ruled unfit as guardians, or Lynn refused to go back to them, so juvenile authorities located some blood relatives, possibly her father or half sister, and put her on a train back East.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Jan. 2026
-
This is a couple unfit to govern a two-bedroom.—
Patricia Marx,
New Yorker,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
There are significant worries that AI can readily go off the rails or otherwise dispense unsuitable or even egregiously inappropriate mental health advice.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
-
These turbines operate effectively in regions unsuitable for conventional wind farms, including mountainous terrain and remote coastal areas.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Oil from free America bailed out the virtue-signaling, totally incompetent Democrats here.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
1 Feb. 2026
-
That means the former voters died, moved away, registered in another state, were convicted of a felony crime, deemed incompetent to vote by a judge or were removed from the state's voter rolls because of inactivity.—
Molly Beck,
jsonline.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Conversely, the state Attorney General's office believes applying the anti-nepotism law in this situation would be an incorrect and overly broad interpretation.—
David Bauerlein,
Florida Times-Union,
4 Feb. 2026
-
The state’s attorneys said that too was incorrect.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Mix Materials The beauty in the unfitted kitchen aesthetic is found in its collected look.—
Patricia Shannon,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 May 2025
-
The venerable American clan at the center of the narrator’s reminiscences are wholly unfitted to the modern world and no longer endowed with the fortune that one of them brought home long ago on clipper ships.—
Daniel Akst,
WSJ,
2 Sep. 2022
Adjective
-
Nanita also faces charges of improper disposal of a body, fraud and larceny.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
1 Feb. 2026
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In addition to the speeding charge, Richardson was cited for following and flashing at vehicles too closely as well as making improper lane changes.—
Cristóbal Reyes,
The Orlando Sentinel,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Defense disputes the case McGuire’s attorney, Joseph Tacopina, argued that the petite nurse was physically incapable of killing her 6-foot-3-inch, 210-pound husband, let alone dismembering his body.—
Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
1 Feb. 2026
-
The toddler danced around, incapable of containing his energy.—
Maeva Bambuck,
CNN Money,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Inapt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inapt. Accessed 6 Feb. 2026.
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