as in unfit
lacking qualities (as knowledge, skill, or ability) required to do a job
an incompetent carpenter had built the deck, and the railings were loose already
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of incompetent
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 24 Apr. 2026
Such an agreement would require battling — and even dismantling — an entrenched and incompetent bureaucracy to speed up economic reforms, and getting rid of old-school historic commanders and everyone else in the government, the Communist Party and the top military echelons standing in the way.
—Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 23 Apr. 2026
Bruce Jenkins, San Francisco Chronicle, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Adjective
Maybe Dan’s buddy Henry (Jake Curran) is even more incompetent than previously hinted at, in terms of aiding and abetting a homicide.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 24 Apr. 2026
Such an agreement would require battling — and even dismantling — an entrenched and incompetent bureaucracy to speed up economic reforms, and getting rid of old-school historic commanders and everyone else in the government, the Communist Party and the top military echelons standing in the way.
—Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 23 Apr. 2026
Noun
The Dodgers reached the pinnacle honestly, in a capitalistic structure that properly hands no favors to the incompetent.
—Bruce Jenkins, San Francisco Chronicle, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incompetent
Adjective
-
Trump—fixated on securing his legacy with a ballroom and a triumphal arch—appears increasingly erratic, unfocused, and unfit for the job assigned to him.—
John Whitehead,
Oc Register,
23 Apr. 2026
-
If venue personnel deem any person to be a threat, or otherwise unfit, in their sole discretion, he or she will not be permitted access and shall forfeit the prize.—
AJC.com,
AJC.com,
23 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Mix Materials The beauty in the unfitted kitchen aesthetic is found in its collected look.—
Patricia Shannon,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 May 2025
-
The venerable American clan at the center of the narrator’s reminiscences are wholly unfitted to the modern world and no longer endowed with the fortune that one of them brought home long ago on clipper ships.—
Daniel Akst,
WSJ,
2 Sep. 2022
Adjective
-
In a rollicking monologue, Fry described all opera as comedy, tragedy merely being the result of idiotic egos incapable of levity.—
Classical Music Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Apr. 2026
-
That means these kittens, in their very first hours and days of life, were physically incapable of generating their own heat.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Luckily, the hunters brought the deer to a butcher who then informed EnCon police.—
Stephen Underwood,
Hartford Courant,
28 Apr. 2026
-
The restaurant’s core beef items reflect his mastery as a butcher.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
For more instant gratification, grab a muddler (or the back of a wooden spoon or the end of a rolling pin).—
The New York Times News Service Syndicate,
Denver Post,
19 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Incompetent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incompetent. Accessed 4 May. 2026.
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