UNFERTILE Synonyms: 55 Similar and Opposite Words

unfertile

adjective

ˌən-ˈfər-tᵊl

Definition of unfertile

as in barren

producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation struggling to make a living with the region's unfertile fields

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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 unfertile Movies based on videogames, once unfertile IP for Hollywood at the box office, have blossomed in recent years. — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 9 June 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for unfertile

Adjective

Much of the lunar surface is pretty barren, but the South Pole, and Shackleton Crater in particular, offers some of the most coveted real estate there.

— Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 18 Aug. 2026
Despite being named after a mineral that’s most often found in barren deserts, turquoise nails are making a splash this summer.

— Bailey Bujnosek, InStyle, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of barren

Adjective

The desolate landscape and little human occupation thereafter helped preserve the rock art through centuries of exposure to wind, rain, and sun.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 13 Aug. 2026
In July 1991, Gerard Dorsey was gunned down in an alley off North Brice Street in a desolate West Baltimore alley.

— Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 5 Aug. 2026

Definition of desolate

Adjective

About one-fifth of Florida’s impoverished elderly people live in the county, state records show.

— Carol Marbin Miller, Miami Herald, 21 Aug. 2026
Behind the scenes, this gritty, impoverished circus company wrestles with violence, illness and animal cruelty.

— Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of impoverished

Adjective

On the other lies a park in one of the Bronx’s poorest communities, built on the site of the former Yankee Stadium after the old home of the Yankees was torn down in 2009 and 2010.

— Sam Blum, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
Iran’s economy was in a dire state before the war too, with poor economic conditions a key driving factor behind the anti-regime demonstrations which kicked off in the Iranian capital city Tehran in 2025.

— Billy Stockwell, CNN Money, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of poor

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unfeminine

unfertile

unfetter

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“Unfertile.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unfertile. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of unfertile

adjective

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