unhappy

adjective

un·​hap·​py ˌən-ˈha-pē 

1

: not fortunate : unlucky

an unhappy coincidence

2

: not cheerful or glad : sad, wretched

3

a

: causing or subject to misfortune : inauspicious

b

: infelicitous, inappropriate

an unhappy choice

unhappiness noun

Synonyms

• bad
• blue
• brokenhearted
• cast down
• crestfallen
• dejected
• depressed
• despondent
• disconsolate
• doleful
• down
• down in the mouth
• downcast
• downhearted
• droopy
• forlorn
• gloomy
• glum
• hangdog
• heartbroken
• heartsick
• heartsore
• heavyhearted
• inconsolable
• joyless
• low
• low-spirited
• melancholic
• melancholy
• miserable
• mournful
• sad
• saddened
• sorrowful
• sorry
• woebegone
• woeful
• wretched

Examples of unhappy in a Sentence

I can see that he's unhappy, but I don't know why.

I've never seen her looking so unhappy.

For three unhappy days we were all stuck in the house because of the blizzard.

an unhappy choice of career

The movie's hero meets an unhappy fate.

Recent Examples on the Web

Instead of simply telling CEOs that employees are unhappy, provide hard evidence that points to why. —Alena Botros, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2024

Pickford grew up in a quiet, unhappy house near Richmond Park, in southwest London. —Sam Knight, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024

But if people disagree on who won the election, some percentage of bettors are destined to be deeply unhappy, no matter how fairly these markets are resolved. —Lila Shroff, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2024

Sadly, the ending is an unhappy one for every snake the team finds. —Longreads, 25 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

unhappy

adjective

un·​hap·​py ˌən-ˈhap-ē 

1

: not fortunate : unlucky

an unhappy mistake

2

: not cheerful : sad

3

: inappropriate

an unhappy color combination

unhappily

-ˈhap-ə-lē

adverb

unhappiness

-ˈhap-i-nəs

noun