Synonyms of unoriginal

unoriginal

adjective

ˌən-ə-ˈrj-jə-nᵊl 

as in imitative

using or marked by the use of something else as a basis or model

critics faulted the novel for having a painfully unoriginal plot

Synonyms & Similar Words

• imitative
• formulaic
• imitation
• copied
• misleading
• mock
• emulative
• deceptive
• mimetic
• slavish
• canned
• apish
• false
• mimic
• fraudulent
• epigonic
• synthetic
• artificial
• fake
• counterfeit
• uninspired
• plagiarized
• bogus
• sham
• factitious
• reproduced
• simulated
• duplicated
• cribbed
• photocopied
• substitute
• transcribed
• reduplicated
• perfunctory
• routine
• forged
• cut-and-dried
• backup
• man-made

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• original
• true
• legitimate
• authentic
• real
• bona fide
• natural
• archetypal
• genuine
• classic
• ideal
• model

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of unoriginal

Other artists copied his style, which at first the artist considered flattering but later saw it as unoriginal as his popularity grew. — Charlotte Observer, 14 Apr. 2026

This makes your home feel intentional and personal instead of sterile and unoriginal. — Ashlyn Needham, The Spruce, 8 Jan. 2026

This seems a rather unoriginal name to be chosen by a woman whose talent lay with words. — Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025

The rhetoric justifying their presence and exonerating their violence is loud and unoriginal, echoing the way Chicago has long been spoken about, when it is spoken about, as a war zone in need of saving from itself. — Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2025