as in illiterate
violating approved patterns of speaking and writing
the résumé and its ungrammatical cover letter were summarily thrown in the trash
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Recent Examples of ungrammatical
The notes were vintage O’Keeffe—brief, vivid, enlightening, and, yes, often ungrammatical, but brilliantly so.
—
Calvin Tomkins,
New Yorker,
15 Dec. 2025
But if language exemplifies the human capacity for internalizing grammatical conventions, then my moment of rule-breaking does not in fact expose some ungrammatical first nature.
—
Harmon Siegel,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
That could be useful for conversations where telegraphic, ungrammatical messages would come off as impolite.
—
Tom Simonite,
Wired,
18 Oct. 2020
But to many Americans, the pronouns are ungrammatical and confusing.
—
Samantha Schmidt,
Washington Post,
16 Aug. 2019
None of that here in the pretentious, inauthentic speech of an ungrammatical kid.
—
Toby Zinman,
Philly.com,
11 June 2018
Yes, its ungrammatical slogan does not exactly roll off the tongue.
—
Mark Lisanti,
Vanities,
11 May 2018
Calvin Tomkins,
New Yorker,
15 Dec. 2025
But if language exemplifies the human capacity for internalizing grammatical conventions, then my moment of rule-breaking does not in fact expose some ungrammatical first nature.
—
Harmon Siegel,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
That could be useful for conversations where telegraphic, ungrammatical messages would come off as impolite.
—
Tom Simonite,
Wired,
18 Oct. 2020
But to many Americans, the pronouns are ungrammatical and confusing.
—
Samantha Schmidt,
Washington Post,
16 Aug. 2019
None of that here in the pretentious, inauthentic speech of an ungrammatical kid.
—
Toby Zinman,
Philly.com,
11 June 2018
Yes, its ungrammatical slogan does not exactly roll off the tongue.
—
Mark Lisanti,
Vanities,
11 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ungrammatical
illiterate
Adjective
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While about 90% of the Black population in Southern states were illiterate in 1865, this percentage dropped to 70% by 1880.
-
The residents of the adjacent villages were largely illiterate rice farmers, who worked their fields by day and illegally cut down trees by night.
Cite this Entry
“Ungrammatical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ungrammatical. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.
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