unpredictability

noun

Definition of unpredictabilitynext
as in capriciousness

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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 unpredictability That unpredictability can influence consumers' buying habits — and it's been doing so in recent months. — Joe Hernandez, NPR, 9 July 2026 Every film, regardless of budget, carries a degree of unpredictability. — Cerys Davies, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2026 The largely unfamiliar cast lend an air of unpredictability that serves the central mystery well, while the city itself — the bulk of the events take place in the brutalist confines of the Barbican Estate — plays an admirable supporting role. — Damon Wise, Deadline, 6 July 2026 This unpredictability was evident on opening weekend, where favorites won only three of eight stakes races. — Danny Brewer, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026 That unpredictability, coupled with Johnson’s razor-thin voting margin, is testing the seemingly cozy relationship between the speaker and the president ahead of the midterms. — Francesca Chambers, USA Today, 2 July 2026 But other than Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale rocking up as the opposition center forward, this cinematic retelling lacks such unpredictability. — Jon O'Brien, Vulture, 26 June 2026 Advertisement Winston notes that due to the unpredictability of the region, airlines may be more cautious and not shift their higher fares just yet, in case hostilities resume. — Tiago Ventura, Time, 26 June 2026 Part of soccer’s beauty lies in its unpredictability. — Eric Zillmer, Scientific American, 26 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unpredictability
  1. capriciousness
  2. impulsiveness
  3. eccentricity
  4. volatility
  5. moodiness
Noun
  • Her capriciousness leads her into an affair with a frustrated professor, Mark (Michael Angarano), who compliments her writing and composes pretentious, backhandedly insulting poems about their not-quite-love.
    — Judy Berman, Time, 15 Apr. 2026
  • Whether out of arrogance, capriciousness, or collective amnesia, this recent history was ignored.
    — John Cassidy, New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2026
Definition of capriciousness
Noun
  • Yakkity’s impulsiveness and wisecracking jokes provide the laughs, while Keo’s rivalry with his father (and his crush on Lemony) ground the show with genuine emotional dynamics.
    — Skyler Trepel, Entertainment Weekly, 20 June 2026
  • That impulsiveness was on display last year when the president pushed the Texas state legislature to gerrymander its electoral maps before the midterms in the hope of maintaining Republican control of Congress.
    — Jason Willick, Washington Post, 26 Apr. 2026
Definition of impulsiveness
Noun
  • An American expat who has fully embraced British eccentricity and emotional opacity, Kimi Murdoch could be a Toni Collette character.
    — Judy Berman, Time, 8 July 2026
  • But eccentricity is only the visible tip of the vast iceberg of Vibeke’s mental health issues, and soon Karl and Rikke are conferring in low whispers about whether, and when, to slip some ground-up sleeping pills into her drink.
    — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 7 July 2026
Definition of eccentricity
Noun
  • Alan Greenspan’s passing is useful not as the subject of my column, but as a marker of an era when many professionals believed large institutions could absorb volatility on their behalf.
    — Henrik Totterman, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
  • Between flights and investor meetings, the executive carves out time to explain economic swings, market volatility, and tech trends, all while touting Blackstone’s global reach.
    — Rachel Ventresca, Fortune, 5 July 2026
Definition of volatility
Noun
  • Lynn told me that Colson shared his father’s moodiness, if not his stifling conservatism.
    — Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 22 June 2026
  • There’s a fine line between creating moodiness and making a space feel suffocating.
    — Ashlyn Needham, The Spruce, 4 June 2026
Definition of moodiness

Browse Nearby Words

unprecedented
unpredictability
unpredictable
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Unpredictability.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unpredictability. Accessed 13 Jul. 2026.

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