as in poisonous
bad for the well-being of the body
the unhealthful level of smog in the city
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Recent Examples of unhealthful
The change comes amid concerns about fireworks causing unhealthful air.
—
Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2025
Health professionals encourage people to use lean cuts of meat because most of the fat in animal products is unhealthful saturated fat, which can raise the risk of heart disease and cancer.
—Bethany Thayer, Detroit Free Press, 22 June 2024
With fire comes unhealthful smoke, which also threatens air quality for much of the U.S.
Wildfire smoke blankets much of the East
Many of the areas experiencing wildfire smoke will see moderate air quality for the next several days, according to the U.S. Air Quality Index.
—Janet Loehrke, USA TODAY, 21 June 2024
The unhealthful effects of autocracy remain robust even when accounting for economic differences and when excluding Venezuela and its collapsing health-care system.
—Thomas J. Bollyky, Foreign Affairs, 30 Jan. 2020
See All Example Sentences for unhealthful
Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2025
Health professionals encourage people to use lean cuts of meat because most of the fat in animal products is unhealthful saturated fat, which can raise the risk of heart disease and cancer.
—Bethany Thayer, Detroit Free Press, 22 June 2024
With fire comes unhealthful smoke, which also threatens air quality for much of the U.S.
Wildfire smoke blankets much of the East
Many of the areas experiencing wildfire smoke will see moderate air quality for the next several days, according to the U.S. Air Quality Index.
—Janet Loehrke, USA TODAY, 21 June 2024
The unhealthful effects of autocracy remain robust even when accounting for economic differences and when excluding Venezuela and its collapsing health-care system.
—Thomas J. Bollyky, Foreign Affairs, 30 Jan. 2020
See All Example Sentences for unhealthful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unhealthful
Adjective
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Nothing was more freeing than finally realizing how poisonous these people are.—
Christina Dugan Ramirez,
FOXNews.com,
21 Oct. 2025
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The scorpion, who will sting with their poisonous venom when hurt, is extremely intuitive and highly aware of their surroundings.—
Lisa Stardust,
Refinery29,
21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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However, deteriorating or disturbed lead paint — through sanding or stripping — can create toxic dust that poses serious health hazards, particularly to children.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
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After a dismal end to Vitor Pereira’s reign, complete with fury from fans towards him, the board and his players, the atmosphere around Wolves is already toxic.—
Steve Madeley,
New York Times,
3 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) AirNow map, which provides a real-time snapshot of air quality, showed that air pollution levels around Sweet Home, northeast of Eugene, were in the unhealthy range on Friday morning.—
Matthew Robinson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Oct. 2025
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Although chocolate can sometimes be associated with unhealthy habits, like eating too much sugar, dark chocolate has many redeeming qualities.—
Christina Manian,
Health,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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But unlike Materialists, those movies—pictures like Leo McCarey’s The Awful Truth or Preston Sturges’ The Palm Beach Story—emerged in a time when Hollywood censors were keeping a close eye on movies’ ideology, determined to protect audiences from unwholesome influences.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
13 June 2025
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By mid-afternoon the weather turned downright unwholesome.—
Arthur Grahame,
Outdoor Life,
4 June 2025
Adjective
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In confidential reports submitted to NASA, flight crews describe being overwhelmed by noxious fumes — struggling to stay conscious, land planes safely, or simply breathe — part of a larger body of evidence suggesting that contaminated cabin air is a recurring threat.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
29 Oct. 2025
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Here, much to the amazement of onlookers, sacrificial animals such as bulls would drop dead after breathing in noxious carbon dioxide fumes swirling up from below.—
Barry Neild,
CNN Money,
27 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The refuse rising in insalubrious piles, some taller than the pedestrians trying to avoid them, is a smelly, visceral symbol of popular outrage at the government’s plan.—
Catherine Porter,
New York Times,
15 Mar. 2023
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Many of the area's most insalubrious haunts are long gone, and in their place mostly restaurants, which come and go.—
Tom Page,
CNN,
30 Jan. 2023
Adjective
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Her parents could have believed their sickly child had died and buried her according to local customs.—
Aishwarya S. Iyer,
CNN Money,
16 Oct. 2025
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Only Abi, the young nanny, can make the sickly girl smile.—
Anna Marie de la Fuente,
Variety,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unhealthful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unhealthful. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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