ˌən-ˈfȯrch-nət
1
as in disastrous
bringing about ruin or misfortune
an unfortunate chain of events destroyed the business
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unhappy
having, prone to, or marked by bad luck
up to that point in her life she had been unfortunate in love
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in tragic
of a kind to cause great distress
an unfortunate choice of words that would later prove to be embarrassing for the talk show host
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unfortunate
Pittsburgh Steelers kick returner Kaleb Johnson suffered an unfortunate blunder during the team’s game against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday afternoon.
—
Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2025
As unfortunate as Burrow’s latest setback is for him, his team and the fans, the networks and their streaming cousins shouldn’t lose too much ground during the Bengals’ upcoming media frenzy.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Its unfortunate operator, however, couldn’t seem to find his target.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 12 Sep. 2025
Jones virtually had all day to stand in the pocket and pick apart the Dolphins’ secondary, which certainly lacked experience before Storm Duck’s unfortunate ankle injury.
—C. Isaiah Smalls Ii, Miami Herald, 11 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unfortunate
Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2025
As unfortunate as Burrow’s latest setback is for him, his team and the fans, the networks and their streaming cousins shouldn’t lose too much ground during the Bengals’ upcoming media frenzy.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Its unfortunate operator, however, couldn’t seem to find his target.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 12 Sep. 2025
Jones virtually had all day to stand in the pocket and pick apart the Dolphins’ secondary, which certainly lacked experience before Storm Duck’s unfortunate ankle injury.
—C. Isaiah Smalls Ii, Miami Herald, 11 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unfortunate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unfortunate
Adjective
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The effect was disastrous, my hair crimped weirdly, with sections shooting out in different directions like the discordant notes of an orchestra tuning up.—
Rachel Kushner,
New Yorker,
14 Sep. 2025
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The mid-quarter update offered a glimmer of hope after Six Flags’ disastrous second quarter earnings report in August.—
Brady MacDonald,
Oc Register,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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My research team works hard to keep the email addresses up to date, but executives keep changing their addresses to avoid having to deal with unhappy customers.—
Christopher Elliott,
Mercury News,
10 Sep. 2025
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But few seemed to leave unhappy.—
Jonathan Hawkins,
CNN Money,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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And these are -- these are very tragic circumstances that impact all of us.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 Sep. 2025
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Before Experience Hendrix After Hendrix’s tragic death, production of the guitarist’s music was in the hands of his allegedly exploitative manager, Michael Jeffery who died in a mysterious 1973 plane crash.—
Mike Alleyne Ph.D,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Prepared Social Feed Posts Automation promises efficiency but can’t accommodate nuance, context or situational changes that a human would change course for (think competitive move, environmental crisis, fatal tragedy, and so on).—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
17 Sep. 2025
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Jimmy Kimmel's late-night talk show was suspended indefinitely following the host's comments on the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
17 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Also, unfavorable factors are the extension price tag that can top tens of billions of dollars annually, and eligibility that includes those making 400% the poverty rate.—
Ramsey Touchberry,
The Washington Examiner,
11 Sep. 2025
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Two years before the Rule was finalized in 1944, the Supreme Court made unfavorable (unpublished) comments about a draft proposal permitting the government to take pretrial depositions.—
Robert Anello,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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This is a potentially catastrophic mistake.—
Ajay Pundhir,
Forbes.com,
17 Sep. 2025
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Arena aims to provide value by helping companies to avoid catastrophic machine failures and reduce the effort necessary to complete safety and maintenance.—
Aman Kidwai,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unfortunate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unfortunate. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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