UNATTRACTIVE Synonyms: 72 Similar and Opposite Words

unattractive

adjective

ˌən-ə-ˈtrak-tiv

Definition of unattractive

as in ugly

unpleasant to look at an unattractive, awkward baby bird

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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 unattractive The same business can be attractive or unattractive depending on what is already included in the price. — Jim Osman, Forbes.com, 11 July 2026 To borrow a phrase from Simone de Beauvoir, the face is not a thing but a situation—one that is, increasingly, more technically beautiful but more spiritually unattractive, replete with new information but devoid of human meaning. — Jia Tolentino, New Yorker, 11 July 2026 The job itself may also be seen as unattractive given recent events. — Austin Horn, Miami Herald, 22 June 2026 Do most people get sufficient calories, even if the food is unattractive? — David Frum, The Atlantic, 17 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for unattractive

Recent Examples of Synonyms for unattractive

Adjective

The deals defined one of the ugliest chapters of Russia’s transition to capitalism in the 1990s.

— Simon Shuster, The Atlantic, 17 July 2026
Leaders must be grounded in self-awareness and their influence, leaning into emotional intelligence and humility; recognizing that different styles shape how people show up amid many influences, good, bad and ugly.

— Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026

Definition of ugly

Adjective

The remarks not only referred to the aesthetics of the game – tedious matches devoid of skillful merit that were unpleasing to watch.

— Cesar R. Torres, The Conversation, 26 May 2026
Usually a team of elegant offense, Michigan instead clanked 13 triples off the rim and relied on its inside defensive ferocity to win a game nearly as aesthetically unpleasing as UConn’s 53-41 win over Butler in 2011.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 7 Apr. 2026

Definition of unpleasing

Adjective

The ace endured a rocky start punctuated by a hideous 11-run blowup in Minnesota and has now been sidelined with a shoulder injury since April 26.

— Mac Cerullo, Hartford Courant, 28 June 2026
Everyone's favorite hideous ogre and delusional donkey are finally reunited.

— Derek Lawrence, Entertainment Weekly, 16 June 2026

Definition of hideous

Adjective

There are other moments in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey that are as beautiful as this scene is grotesque.

— Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026
On view at New York’s Management Gallery, the exhibition treats the grotesque as an aesthetic on the verge of mutation.

— Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 15 July 2026

Definition of grotesque

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unattended

unattractive

unattractiveness

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“Unattractive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unattractive. Accessed 23 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of unattractive

adjective

Example Sentences

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