as in shrill
marked by or producing a harsh combination of sounds
a very unmusical chorus of squawks from the angry ravens
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unmusical
Those songs remind Omara of real people and real events, political interludes whose senselessness and brutality have left unmusical lacunae in her life.
—
Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2023
His parents were unmusical Russian-Jewish immigrants who ran various businesses with mixed success.
—The Economist, 3 Oct. 2019
Paradoxically, then, the man most involved in the development of the electric guitar was the unmusical Leo Fender.
—David Kirby, WSJ, 17 Jan. 2019
The controversy of Schoenberg’s serialist works—the overwhelming reaction to them as ugly, nightmarish, simply unmusical—shows how firmly tonality had come to condition habits of listening.
—Paul Grimstad, The New Republic, 21 June 2018
Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2023
His parents were unmusical Russian-Jewish immigrants who ran various businesses with mixed success.
—The Economist, 3 Oct. 2019
Paradoxically, then, the man most involved in the development of the electric guitar was the unmusical Leo Fender.
—David Kirby, WSJ, 17 Jan. 2019
The controversy of Schoenberg’s serialist works—the overwhelming reaction to them as ugly, nightmarish, simply unmusical—shows how firmly tonality had come to condition habits of listening.
—Paul Grimstad, The New Republic, 21 June 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unmusical
Adjective
-
There’s a straight line between the criminal investigation of Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell and increasingly shrill threats to seize Greenland.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
21 Jan. 2026
-
With sports gambling legalized throughout much of the country and growing rapidly, the NCAA and the sports gambling industry should be hearing shrill alarm bells in this indictment and acting accordingly.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
20 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Less mature organizations remain noisy.—
Alexander Puutio,
Forbes.com,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Minnesota State Patrol troopers used a powerful sound system first used by the military in Maple Grove, Minnesota, to communicate and disperse noisy protesters.—
Derek James,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
That album steered far clear of folkloric kitsch, preferring dissonant frequencies and minimalist arrangements.—
Philip Sherburne,
Pitchfork,
7 Jan. 2026
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The cast fragmented, with the Byers family and El trying to start over in California while Hopper languished in a tonally dissonant Soviet gulag, as though the Duffers didn’t realize that what people loved most about Stranger Things was its grounding in Hawkins.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
26 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Using a speaker outside the stall results in reverb and echoing as the music bounces around the bathroom walls, making the sound muddy and unpleasant.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Jan. 2026
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Given the lack of gravity, even a runny nose can turn into an extremely unpleasant experience, forcing astronauts to resort to unusual measures just to drain mucus from their nasal passages.—
Victor Tangermann,
Futurism,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The actress donned a slinky metallic shift dress in her latest Instagram post in partnership with the skincare brand Shiseido.—
Emma Banks,
InStyle,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Red flags included bitterness or any metallic notes the beans may have picked up during processing.—
Sam Stone,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Setting Discordant Personal Goals A 2023 study published in Current Psychology finds that partners’ inharmonious goals can have detrimental effects on relationships.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
29 Mar. 2024
-
For sixteen hours a week, Valentine hopes to share some melody in a place that, for some, can feel inharmonious.—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
24 July 2021
Adjective
-
This time, the commission’s bargaining position was undercut from the start by a cacophonous chorus, with key member states preemptively voicing their opposition to retaliation.—
Matthias Matthijs,
Foreign Affairs,
12 Dec. 2025
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By making the dialogue more cacophonous as the pressure mounts, Ottosson replicates the feelings of the characters, who have trained hundreds of times for various scenarios — but are now experiencing something that goes beyond their typical exercises.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
26 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unmusical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unmusical. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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