unhelpful

adjective

Definition of unhelpfulnext
1
as in harmful

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Dissimilar Words
2
as in impractical

Related Words

Dissimilar Words
3
as in impolite

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Dissimilar Words

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 unhelpful Payroll trend, revisions, hours worked, and the hiring rate all lead it, and all four are currently pointing the same unhelpful direction. — Jason Kirsch, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 Adri Salido / Getty Images The crisis has fueled anti-immigration rhetoric throughout Europe and sparked diplomatic tensions within the European Union over border policy, with Spain accusing some partners of an unhelpful and polarizing response. — Reuters, NBC news, 3 Aug. 2026 Cognitive behavioral therapy teaches skills like establishing a consistent sleep schedule, strengthening the connection between bed and sleep, and changing the unhelpful worries that keep people awake. — Joan M. Cook, Time, 31 July 2026 Alice questions Mira while Frank mutters completely unhelpful asides from behind the glass partition. — Erin Qualey, Vulture, 28 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for unhelpful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unhelpful
  1. harmful
  2. impractical
  3. impolite
  4. unfavorable
  5. unusable
  6. thoughtless
  7. damaging
  8. useless
Adjective
  • But fasted training isn’t necessarily harmful to muscle gain, Maroldi adds.
    — Daryl Austin, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026
  • What’s considered harmful to minors can be subjective, and this is where experts believe laws requiring age verification can run afoul of the First Amendment.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of harmful
Adjective
  • Force majeure clauses excuse a party from performance when an unforeseeable external event like extreme weather or war makes performance impossible or impractical.
    — Ashlee Difuntorum, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • There is no justification for American deaths in the name of the unsustainable and impractical goal of total military dominance, let alone unnecessary wars of choice.
    — Alexander Langlois, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of impractical
Adjective
  • Mel might be a disaster with her loud mouth and impolite antics, but her over-the-top meddling does her buddies some good.
    — Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Agents are neither polite nor impolite; they are unconstrained until constrained.
    — Evan J. Schwartz, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of impolite
Adjective
  • Affirm left Australia in 2023 shortly after unfavorable macroeconomic conditions prompted the company to lay off 19 percent of its workforce.
    — Roy Stephen Canivel, Footwear News, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Polling has consistently shown most voters have an unfavorable view of both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party.
    — Clara Hendrickson, Freep.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of unfavorable
Adjective
  • Phoenix Semiconductor engineers helped NAVAIR recover a supply of unusable legacy chips for a safety-critical system on the F/A-18 Super Hornet.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026
  • John Gruber, a tech blogger, posited that Claude would now more readily default to watermarked words, rather than unleash the full scope of its linguistic range, which might result in lower-quality text, or in some cases unusable prose.
    — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of unusable
Adjective
  • At the outset of this chatty novel, the protagonist, Caroline, who was recently ghosted by a thoughtless man, has had a story published in this magazine.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026
  • That self-deprecating description opens Tony, writer-director Matt Johnson’s movie about the one crazy summer that changed a thoughtless young lout’s life; for good measure, the quote does double duty as the tagline on the film’s poster.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of thoughtless
Adjective
  • It’s also infused with an antioxidant-rich blend of Australian botanicals and a blue light complex to help protect skin from the damaging blue light emitted by screens and devices.
    — Alison Abbey Hudak, Footwear News, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Hamza Iqbal, 20; Rehan Khan, 19; Judex Atshatshi; and Saif Ali, both 18, faced a charge of destroying or damaging property and of being reckless as to whether life would be endangered.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of damaging
Adjective
  • Leading models aren’t completely useless at handling Cantonese.
    — Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Built-ins designed for Pinterest, not your daily routine, will quickly look dated and feel useless.
    — Angelika Pokovba, Martha Stewart, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of useless

Browse Nearby Words

unheeding
unhelpful
unheralded
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Unhelpful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unhelpful. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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