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
Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 9 June 2026
Murekezi was found incompetent due to mental illness in December 2023, and court proceedings in his two cases were put on hold.
—Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 8 June 2026
Bruce Jenkins, San Francisco Chronicle, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for incompetent
Adjective
Pieces’ acting and writing are ridiculous and often incompetent, though the film is notably not lacking in style.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 9 June 2026
Murekezi was found incompetent due to mental illness in December 2023, and court proceedings in his two cases were put on hold.
—Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 8 June 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
-
Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the governor’s wife, said the investigation showed that Trump is unfit for office.—
Sophie Austin,
Fortune,
15 June 2026
-
His ensuing words were unfit for inclusion in this story.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
14 June 2026
Noun
-
Independent butchers are rare these days, as chain grocery stores with in-house butchers have become more prevalent.—
Emily M. Olson,
Hartford Courant,
12 June 2026
-
Brown butchers then salts the chickens overnight, and marinates them in a mixture of ancho and puya chiles, garlic and chipotle.—
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
11 June 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
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
Adjective
-
Some of the men on this season are literally incapable of any form of connection that doesn’t involve making out.—
Ben Rosenstock,
Vulture,
12 June 2026
-
This definition also includes instance in which the victim is incapable of giving consent because of temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity (include due to the influence of drugs or alcohol) or because of age.—
Baltimore Sun staff,
Baltimore Sun,
12 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Incompetent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incompetent. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
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