unseemliness

noun

Definition of unseemlinessnext
as in unfitness
the quality or state of not being socially proper I should not have to explain the unseemliness of wearing a red miniskirt to a funeral

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 unseemliness No, the Heat would never go there, a flat-out, from-the-start commitment to lottery odds no matter the unseemliness of it all. — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 21 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unseemliness
  1. unfitness
  2. inappropriateness
  3. disrespect
Noun
  • Not just shame but gross unfitness for serving in a role at a state university.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Musk attempted to color Altman as a uniquely unsuitable supervisor of this technology, but this invariably invited further scrutiny into his own abject unfitness for the role.
    — Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 20 May 2026
Definition of unfitness
Noun
  • This is expressed just as her 14-year-old appears to see that her earlier prediction about Carmella’s likelihood of inappropriateness had come true.
    — Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of inappropriateness
Noun
  • What readers are saying The comments express frustration and disappointment over the littering and disrespect shown by visitors to national parks, particularly Yellowstone.
    — Andrea Sachs, Washington Post, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The board's vague message didn't point to specific administrators or specific instances of disrespect.
    — Aubrey Wright, IndyStar, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of disrespect

Browse Nearby Words

unseeable
unseemliness
unseemly
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Unseemliness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unseemliness. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tittle

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All