as in unlawful
not conforming to a high moral standard; morally unacceptable
an unrighteous act that cannot go unpunished by the congregation
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of unrighteous
Spears writes of these unrighteous men matter-of-factly, avoiding the ad hominem attack, except for an occasional delicious arrow, including a recollection of the eternally white Timberlake meeting one of his rap heroes.
—
Stephen Rodrick, Variety, 24 Oct. 2023
He’s gone through buzzard-hot streaks and some slumps, at times taking wholly unrighteous shots, and none of that matters to the shooting guard.
—Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 23 Apr. 2021
Christ himself suffered on account of sins, once for all, the righteous one on behalf of the unrighteous.
—Olivia Muenter, Woman's Day, 8 Feb. 2023
The millions who tune in to Carlson every night to get their outrage on should remember what their favorite host traffics in: bloviation, demagoguery and unrighteous indignation.
—Washington Post, 24 Feb. 2022
Many people, after all, think that the righteous should prosper and the unrighteous not.
—Kwame Anthony Appiah, New York Times, 27 July 2021
As with all fan bases, there are exceptions, a troubled few who have lost their minds over their fanaticism for a team that on the whole has deserved their righteous support, but not their unrighteous idiocy.
—Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 26 Mar. 2021
An early episode in this cycle played out in the seemingly unrighteous realm of Hollywood backstage drama.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 16 June 2020
Brief letter from the soldiers of Islamic State in the land of Andalus for the crusaders, the hateful, the sinful, the unrighteous, the corrupting ones.
—Jeannette Neumann, WSJ, 23 Aug. 2017
Stephen Rodrick, Variety, 24 Oct. 2023
He’s gone through buzzard-hot streaks and some slumps, at times taking wholly unrighteous shots, and none of that matters to the shooting guard.
—Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 23 Apr. 2021
Christ himself suffered on account of sins, once for all, the righteous one on behalf of the unrighteous.
—Olivia Muenter, Woman's Day, 8 Feb. 2023
The millions who tune in to Carlson every night to get their outrage on should remember what their favorite host traffics in: bloviation, demagoguery and unrighteous indignation.
—Washington Post, 24 Feb. 2022
Many people, after all, think that the righteous should prosper and the unrighteous not.
—Kwame Anthony Appiah, New York Times, 27 July 2021
As with all fan bases, there are exceptions, a troubled few who have lost their minds over their fanaticism for a team that on the whole has deserved their righteous support, but not their unrighteous idiocy.
—Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 26 Mar. 2021
An early episode in this cycle played out in the seemingly unrighteous realm of Hollywood backstage drama.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 16 June 2020
Brief letter from the soldiers of Islamic State in the land of Andalus for the crusaders, the hateful, the sinful, the unrighteous, the corrupting ones.
—Jeannette Neumann, WSJ, 23 Aug. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unrighteous
Adjective
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Instead, advocates say those who are not in shelter are being pushed farther and farther away from services in an attempt to escape unlawful camping citations.—
Keely Doll,
The Courier-Journal,
15 Aug. 2025
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Drake Solomon accuses his former employer of disability discrimination and an unlawful severance offer.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
15 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Rudy flames out on his first day, though, and ends up working for a shady lawyer named Bruiser (Lana Parrilla) and her gleefully immoral paralegal Deck (P.J. Byrne).—
Dave Nemetz,
TVLine,
12 Aug. 2025
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And that may be a good thing for humanity: For humans to thrive in this new era, immoral corporate executives and world leaders alike need to be replaced by AI, Gawdat advised.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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As Wednesday processes this, the evil one-eyed crow shows up and flies off with her evidence in its beak.—
Jessica M. Goldstein,
Vulture,
6 Aug. 2025
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Ed and Lorraine had contact with the most vile and evil entities tied to those objects.—
Pamela McLoughlin,
Hartford Courant,
5 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Don’t dream of leaving without ordering a gigantic slice of the coconut cake with cream cheese frosting—sinful and certainly comforting.—
Steve Forbes,
Forbes.com,
30 July 2025
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Growing up in rural Tennessee, my grandfather learned that certain activities — card playing, smoking, imbibing — were sinful.—
Peter Rowe,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 July 2025
Adjective
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There's no rest for the wicked in Ligue 1 as Lens prepares to open another campaign in the French top flight at home to Lyon on Sunday.—
Kilty Cleary,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Aug. 2025
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Not since the days of Gossip Girl, the deliciously wicked mid-2000s teen television drama, has New York City's Upper East Side been a spot for the cool kids.—
Elizabeth Cantrell,
Travel + Leisure,
15 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Feeling profoundly betrayed and abandoned by David, Rebecca’s loyalty lies with the vicious and conniving Juno, the only family she’s known for the last decade.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
13 Aug. 2025
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Nothing could possibly go wrong with all the vicious alien specimens on board, right?—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
12 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Jacob called his father prior to his death, and the worried dad overheard Donald shouting vile insults at his son, said prosecutors.—
Colin Mixson,
New York Daily News,
9 Aug. 2025
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Ed and Lorraine had contact with the most vile and evil entities tied to those objects.—
Pamela McLoughlin,
Hartford Courant,
5 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Umbro have taken a ‘back to basics’ approach with West Ham’s kits this year, which absolutely does not mean bad.—
Nick Miller,
New York Times,
15 Aug. 2025
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Not bad for a company built on the back of a $40 plastic-cased watch!—
Oren Hartov,
Robb Report,
15 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unrighteous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unrighteous. Accessed 23 Aug. 2025.
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