1
as in foolish
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
made the unwise decision to invest in a brand-new company
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in inappropriate
showing poor judgment especially in personal relationships or social situations
an unwise urge to confide in total strangers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in stupid
not having or showing a deep understanding of something
a stunningly unwise observer of the political scene
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 unwise
Some users agreed that enabling message previews on any kind of device—not just Apple’s—seemed unwise in light of 404 Media’s reporting.
—
Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 23 Apr. 2026
Blanket bans on practices that lower prices and improve user experience are unwise at a time when Californians cite cost-of-living pressures among their top concerns.
—Satya Marar, Oc Register, 17 Apr. 2026
Handing the keys of power to wannabe authoritarians is starting to look deeply unwise in light of Washington’s military and trade misadventures.
—Lionel Laurent, Twin Cities, 17 Apr. 2026
Look, betting against Favreau is probably unwise.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 17 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unwise
Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 23 Apr. 2026
Blanket bans on practices that lower prices and improve user experience are unwise at a time when Californians cite cost-of-living pressures among their top concerns.
—Satya Marar, Oc Register, 17 Apr. 2026
Handing the keys of power to wannabe authoritarians is starting to look deeply unwise in light of Washington’s military and trade misadventures.
—Lionel Laurent, Twin Cities, 17 Apr. 2026
Look, betting against Favreau is probably unwise.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 17 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unwise
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unwise
Adjective
-
If the target was foolish enough to reuse passwords, credential thefts like these could enable the compromise of more important accounts.—
Rob Pegoraro,
PC Magazine,
3 June 2026
-
Backing the Cubs right now seems foolish.—
David Troy OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
27 May 2026
Adjective
-
Others, however, said naming the animal after the president was inappropriate.—
Michael Sinkewicz,
FOXNews.com,
4 June 2026
-
Enforcement of inappropriate corner crossing will continue to be difficult for FWP, but Callaghan notes that enforcement is only one part of the relationship balance that FWP Director Clark noted between private property rights and public-access rights.—
Andrew McKean,
Outdoor Life,
4 June 2026
Adjective
-
And that was so arrogant and stupid on my part.—
Brendan Morrow,
USA Today,
3 June 2026
-
At some point, Brandon Aiyuk has to learn that stupid decisions come with consequences.—
Armando Salguero OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
3 June 2026
Adjective
-
Through the fuzz and the bad camera angles emerges an extraordinary catalogue of dummies, flicks, and feints, a hodge-podge of silly tricks.—
Jack Lang,
New York Times,
28 May 2026
-
To lose that would be silly now.—
Mikey O'Connell,
HollywoodReporter,
28 May 2026
Adjective
-
Additional charges included negligently driving a vehicle in a careless and imprudent manner, endangering property, life, and person, as well as recklessly driving a vehicle in wanton and willful disregard for the safety of persons and property.—
Diane J. Cho,
PEOPLE,
16 Apr. 2026
-
To be fair, those imprudent claims were made without the benefit of seeing this evidence.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Nate Bargatze is not a dumb guy.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
28 May 2026
-
And what is dumber than a fart?—
Derek Lawrence,
Entertainment Weekly,
28 May 2026
Adjective
-
There is always the possibility that something absurd might occur — the equivalent of Neymar’s 2017 move to Paris Saint-Germain, for instance — but that’s extremely unlikely.—
Sebastian Stafford-Bloor,
New York Times,
27 May 2026
-
Ironically, the fears of two Republicans advancing were driven by Democratic data vendor Paul Mitchell, who built a prediction machine using absurd inputs like betting odds and polls that cannot account for things like rape allegations.—
Matt Fleming,
Oc Register,
27 May 2026
Adjective
-
One metric tracks the number of improper payments states handed out to claimants.—
Sam Tabachnik,
Denver Post,
31 May 2026
-
All sorts of improper provisions and constitutionally contentious stipulations are undoubtedly buried within these shiny new AI laws.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unwise.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unwise. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
