unfortunate

adjective

ˌən-ˈfȯrch-nət
Definition of unfortunatenext
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

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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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 unfortunate But both the allusion to the fictional character and the marketing misstep were unfortunate. — Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 28 Aug. 2026 Hall was excellent for Newcastle against Liverpool in the clubs’ season opener on Sunday, and unfortunate to concede a stoppage-time penalty for the equaliser. — Andy Naylor, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026 People have an unfortunate tendency to make this song sound dour, but Garcia fills it with energy. — Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 25 Aug. 2026 Parton’s health challenges followed an unfortunate and difficult period in her life, as her husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, died in March 2025. — Alicia Urrea, Billboard, 25 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for unfortunate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unfortunate
  1. disastrous
  2. unhappy
  3. tragic
  4. fatal
  5. catastrophic
Adjective
  • Arjun Poudel, a health reporter in Nepal, was commuting to the offices of the Kathmandu Post, in the country’s capital, when messages started coming in about a disastrous flood in his home town, close to the border with China.
    — Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Since a disastrous debut, the rookie right-hander has allowed just two runs over his last 9 2/3 innings with 15 strikeouts.
    — Justice delos Santos, Mercury News, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of disastrous
Adjective
  • Garcia and fellow Democrats are mindful of what’s driving unhappy voters who face a vexing mix of inflation and weak economic growth.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Sometimes kids performing things on TV look unhappy or awkward, but this girl seems to genuinely enjoy singing while her dad plays guitar.
    — Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of unhappy
Adjective
  • That's the common denominator, to be quite honest, between the success stories and the tragic stories.
    — Kalia Richardson, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Even Treadwell, who spend thirteen summers in Alaska compiling some 100 hours of bear footage, wasn’t even remotely prepared for his encounters, evidenced by his tragic death at the hands of one of his beloved grizzlies.
    — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of tragic
Adjective
  • An incident that for others might be fatal—a free fall from a high bridge—affects the coyote for only a brief moment.
    — Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • There is a broad debate over the applicability of PNB to modern anti-trust cases, with many legal scholars finding the application of a random number, without any real analysis of the potential harm a merger might cause, to be a fatal flaw.
    — Shubha Ghosh, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of fatal
Adjective
  • But the day after her last conversations with her family, catastrophic floods struck Nepal’s valleys along the Chinese border killing more than 1,000 people and leaving another roughly 3,900 unaccounted for, according to the Associated Press.
    — Wendy Grossman Kantor, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
  • More than 1,000 people are dead and nearly 4,000 missing after a Himalayan glacial collapse unleashed catastrophic floods across the Nepal-China border, obliterating roads, towns and hydropower projects.
    — Shristi Kafle, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of catastrophic

Browse Nearby Words

unforthcoming
unfortunate
unfortunately
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Cite this Entry

“Unfortunate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unfortunate. Accessed 3 Sep. 2026.

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Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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