as in erratic
likely to change frequently, suddenly, or unexpectedly
I wouldn't count on him to show up for the play—he's pretty unreliable. She drives her car locally, but worries it's too unreliable for longer trips.
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unreliable
No Bieber plus an unreliable Williams, McKenzie and Logan Allen added up to a trip to the ALCS.
—
Zack Meisel, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
There are several advanced monitoring components: • Outlier Detection: Flags anomalous predictions that may be unreliable for production use, particularly important given the noisy nature of real-world data.
—Neel Sendas, Forbes.com, 4 Apr. 2025
Is Demko too unreliable with his health that his cap hit would be better spent upgrading the forward group?
—Harman Dayal, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2025
To be sure, these predictions are notoriously unreliable, but the fact remains that Wall Street, which cheered Trump’s election, is losing faith.
—John Cassidy, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unreliable
Zack Meisel, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
There are several advanced monitoring components: • Outlier Detection: Flags anomalous predictions that may be unreliable for production use, particularly important given the noisy nature of real-world data.
—Neel Sendas, Forbes.com, 4 Apr. 2025
Is Demko too unreliable with his health that his cap hit would be better spent upgrading the forward group?
—Harman Dayal, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2025
To be sure, these predictions are notoriously unreliable, but the fact remains that Wall Street, which cheered Trump’s election, is losing faith.
—John Cassidy, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unreliable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unreliable
Adjective
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The cuts would devastate weather and climate research as weather is becoming more erratic, extreme and costly.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 2025
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Wall Street has been in an erratic yo-yo pattern since Donald Trump announced, held off, implemented, augmented, and paused worldwide tariffs.—
Lieke ten Brummelhuis,
Forbes.com,
10 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Then Mitchell got hot in the clutch, scoring nine points on 3-of-4 shooting from three-point range in overtime after a shaky first half that included 0-of-4 shooting from the field.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
20 Apr. 2025
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After a shaky leadoff routine, the squad dominated the event.—
Caroline Price,
Forbes.com,
19 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Even so, the practice of choosing a papal name remained inconsistent for the next 1,000 years, with most popes using their baptismal names.—
Christopher Watson,
ABC News,
21 Apr. 2025
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After an inconsistent first half of the season, manager Unai Emery has found a way of tinkering with Villa’s line-up and still winning.—
Chris Waugh,
New York Times,
21 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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But while the stock market is often a fickle friend, as are commodities such as oil and natural gas, wheat and corn, part of what was so shocking in 2022 was the simultaneous slump in government and corporate bonds, which proved as undependable as stocks.—
,
CNBC,
18 Feb. 2025
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Food, water and other resources would have to be shipped from home, at distances that make the supply frighteningly undependable.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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The suit also paints a clownish portrait of the entrepreneur, portraying him as pompous, shameless, and untrustworthy.—
Rachel Corbett,
Vulture,
16 Apr. 2025
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This acronym stands for All Women Are Like That and is used to promote the idea that all women are inherently untrustworthy or manipulative.—
Samantha Mann,
Parents,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The source said Republicans view Powell as an important pillar of stability in the U.S. economy amid Trump’s unpredictable tariff war against foreign trading partners, including allies such as Canada, Japan, South Korean and Taiwan.—
Alexander Bolton,
The Hill,
22 Apr. 2025
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Spring temps can be unpredictable, so don’t forget to add on a pashmina-style shawl and some statement earrings.—
Jené Luciani Sena,
FOXNews.com,
21 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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But her life is unexpectedly upended by the arrival of a new student in her class: her charming but volatile younger brother Merritt.—
Samantha Bergeson,
IndieWire,
16 Apr. 2025
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Here’s what their analysis found: Only 8.4% of investors executed trades on any of those days, reacting to the volatile market by buying or selling stocks.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
16 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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But the reality is that everyone feels the heat when life is unstable—even therapists.—
Korin Miller,
SELF,
14 Apr. 2025
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Finally, the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act says that schools must enroll and educate students who are with unstable living situations, including migrants, without discrimination.—
Brian Boggs,
The Conversation,
11 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unreliable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unreliable. Accessed 30 Apr. 2025.
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