as in unfit
lacking qualities (as knowledge, skill, or ability) required to do a job
an incompetent carpenter had built the deck, and the railings were loose already
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of incompetent
David Wysong, Cincinnati Enquirer, 3 Sep. 2025
Crooked and grossly incompetent Joe Biden would not let Ukraine FIGHT BACK, only DEFEND.
—Peter Aitken, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Although there are occasional car chases and shootouts and eventually an upsettingly high body count, its cops are not particularly competent (Lizzie, in fact, is notably incompetent, prone to freezing up at inopportune times), and its criminals not especially clever.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 28 Aug. 2025
Antoni is that rarity who has drawn harsh criticism from economists on the right as well as the mainstream for being ignorant, unprincipled, and incompetent.
—Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Noun
But the ways in which Ned and Michael are incompetent vary drastically.
—David Wysong, Cincinnati Enquirer, 3 Sep. 2025
Crooked and grossly incompetent Joe Biden would not let Ukraine FIGHT BACK, only DEFEND.
—Peter Aitken, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Although there are occasional car chases and shootouts and eventually an upsettingly high body count, its cops are not particularly competent (Lizzie, in fact, is notably incompetent, prone to freezing up at inopportune times), and its criminals not especially clever.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 28 Aug. 2025
Antoni is that rarity who has drawn harsh criticism from economists on the right as well as the mainstream for being ignorant, unprincipled, and incompetent.
—Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incompetent
Adjective
-
Lee would sometimes visit Anderson at the Highland Chateau health and rehabilitation center in Highland Park, where she had been relocated with some objection after her Surrey Avenue property was deemed unfit for human habitation.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Detroit RUNDetroit, 1948 Division St Suite 105, collects old shoes for Zaman International, who will reporpose gently used pairs or recycle unfit shoes, according to RUNDetroit's Instagram.—
Natalie Davies,
Freep.com,
6 Sep. 2025
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
-
But Loomans suggests that an external system is fundamentally incapable of creating a Zen-like feeling of tranquillity and calm.—
Joshua Rothman,
New Yorker,
16 Sep. 2025
-
All the teachers sat silently next to the crowd, completely incapable of controlling them.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
There’s an Argentine market and butcher shop in the Valley that is now called Mercado Buenos Aires.—
Steve Knopper,
Billboard,
12 Sep. 2025
-
For her part, Cherry, a real estate agent and the daughter of a butcher, is determined to cling to her new lover.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
For more instant gratification, grab a muddler (or the back of a wooden spoon or the end of a rolling pin).—
The New York Times News Service Syndicate,
Denver Post,
19 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Incompetent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incompetent. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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