1
as in barren
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
crop rotation had prevented the farmland from becoming unproductive
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unsuccessful
producing no results
her attempts to write a novel have been unproductive
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unproductive
After an unproductive call with Caroline's belligerent husband (Ronald Bronstein), Linda gives the child to the police.
—
Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Mar. 2026
But the tone, substance, and other conclusions that characterize the piece are irresponsible, and unproductive.
—Neil Chilson, Fortune, 20 Feb. 2026
Tens of thousands of unproductive and unplugged oil wells have been abandoned across California — many of which continue to leak potentially explosive methane or toxic benzene.
—Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2026
Blueberries Blueberry plants become weak and unproductive if they’re not pruned from time to time in winter.
—Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unproductive
Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Mar. 2026
But the tone, substance, and other conclusions that characterize the piece are irresponsible, and unproductive.
—Neil Chilson, Fortune, 20 Feb. 2026
Tens of thousands of unproductive and unplugged oil wells have been abandoned across California — many of which continue to leak potentially explosive methane or toxic benzene.
—Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2026
Blueberries Blueberry plants become weak and unproductive if they’re not pruned from time to time in winter.
—Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unproductive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unproductive
Adjective
-
It cannot be maintained in such barren ground.—
David B Mcgarry,
Oc Register,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Haggerty noted what the Artemis crew saw on the moon’s surface, including steep canyon walls and barren wasteland.—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Life-saving measures were unsuccessful.—
Forum News Service,
Twin Cities,
9 Apr. 2026
-
During the most recent campaign and in a previous unsuccessful run for mayor, Laesch claimed Irvin prioritized government contracts or incentives to those who donated to his campaign, which Irvin consistently denied.—
R. Christian Smith,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
And that’s become a background topic this week, how a once-sumptuous secondary ticket market has become desolate.—
Gabriel Burns,
AJC.com,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Eastern New Mexico — dry, desolate — looks and feels very much like an appendage of West Texas.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Tackling plant problems at the wrong time in a plant’s or insect’s life cycle can be futile and environmentally harmful.—
Beth Botts,
Chicago Tribune,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Ultimately, the Yanks would spend 2 hours and 45 minutes on the court, meaning 2023 champion Tiafoe, who had prevailed in two previous marathons, wound up whacking balls for eight-plus hours in his ultimately futile bid for reach a fourth consecutive final here.—
Dale Robertson,
Houston Chronicle,
4 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
In Raspail’s tale, hordes of impoverished and dark-skinned brutes from India descend onto French shores by way of rafts, the first wave of an invasion of the civilized West by the brown-skinned developing world.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 Apr. 2026
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The youngsters took the train south to the deep, impoverished heart of China.—
Michael Sheridan,
Vanity Fair,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Instead of being an anchoring penultimate episode, the entire display felt useless and confusing, as if the audience was suddenly watching an entirely different television program.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
9 Apr. 2026
-
In my tests, the feature was almost completely useless.—
Will Greenwald,
PC Magazine,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Arsenal were pretty poor but won, Sporting were pretty good but lost.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2026
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Ackman blamed its poor share price performance partly on the delay of UMG’s listing in the United States.—
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Its 2020 anti-waste law requires unsold nonfood goods to be reused, donated or recycled instead of destroyed.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Breakfast is served in the Heritage Room, and is never too copious, in line with the hotel's anti-waste policy.—
Maddalena Fossati,
Condé Nast Traveler,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unproductive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unproductive. Accessed 14 Apr. 2026.
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