unsuccessful
adjective
un·suc·cess·ful
ˌən-sək-ˈses-fəl 
: not successful : not meeting with or producing success
Synonyms
Examples of unsuccessful in a Sentence
His last novel was unsuccessful.
an unsuccessful attempt to fix the faucet ourselves
Recent Examples on the Web
Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office and Walnut Grove Fire District personnel searched that first night from the air and aboard boats equipped with sonar and powerful magnets to detect the submerged vehicle but were unsuccessful.
—
Darrell Smith, Sacramento Bee, 6 Feb. 2025
The Celtics held an 11-point lead five minutes into the third quarter when Brown elevated for an unsuccessful dunk attempt on Cleveland’s Georges Niang.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 5 Feb. 2025
Musk's $44 billion purchase of Twitter in 2022 has been seen by some business analysts as an unsuccessful investment as the company's value has gone down sharply over the years with users and advertisers dropping the platform.
—Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 5 Feb. 2025
Similar motions to the bills—known as HB 1400 and HB 0039—have previously been filed but were unsuccessful, meaning the outcome of the measures is unclear, per WGN9.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for unsuccessful 
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.
Darrell Smith, Sacramento Bee, 6 Feb. 2025
The Celtics held an 11-point lead five minutes into the third quarter when Brown elevated for an unsuccessful dunk attempt on Cleveland’s Georges Niang.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 5 Feb. 2025
Musk's $44 billion purchase of Twitter in 2022 has been seen by some business analysts as an unsuccessful investment as the company's value has gone down sharply over the years with users and advertisers dropping the platform.
—Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 5 Feb. 2025
Similar motions to the bills—known as HB 1400 and HB 0039—have previously been filed but were unsuccessful, meaning the outcome of the measures is unclear, per WGN9.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for unsuccessful
Dictionary Entries Near unsuccessful
Cite this Entry
“Unsuccessful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unsuccessful. Accessed 11 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
unsuccessful
adjective
un·suc·cess·ful
ˌən(t)-sək-ˈses-fəl
: not successful : not having or producing success
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share