as in inappropriate
not appropriate for a particular occasion or situation
an infelicitous comment on the weight of the guest of honor at the banquet
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Recent Examples of infelicitous
Notwithstanding infelicitous boasting, Trump is a man of his word who will scrupulously honor his oath of office.
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Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 10 Nov. 2024
Even so, the impulse to nationalize the problem will have its own, infelicitous effects.
—Daniel Engber, The Atlantic, 12 Mar. 2024
Film-school student Haynes always imitates better directors — Fassbinder’s social melodrama, Joseph Losey’s studies of decadence (pilfering the infelicitous piano score from Losey’s The Go-Between, from 1971).
—Armond White, National Review, 10 Jan. 2024
Dallas American politics lately feels like an endless game of—pardon the infelicitous word—delegitimation.
—Barton Swaim, wsj.com, 18 Apr. 2023
The New York bill would implement a concept called extended producer responsibility, an incredibly infelicitous recycling term.
—Michael Kimmelman, New York Times, 27 Jan. 2021
That grid revision unfortunately resulted in some infelicitous words being added to the puzzle.
—New York Times, 3 Feb. 2020
Despite the infelicitous coincidence of the election date with Easter — which would normally have been expected to depress turnout — turnout actually ticked slightly upward from recent contests, to 67 percent.
—Amy Erica Smith, Vox, 2 Apr. 2018
As in video games, the action is lurid, hyperkinetic, and gruesomely violent, with nods to Grand Theft Auto and a comparably infelicitous treatment of the few women characters who show up.
—Chicago Reader, 12 Oct. 2017
Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 10 Nov. 2024
Even so, the impulse to nationalize the problem will have its own, infelicitous effects.
—Daniel Engber, The Atlantic, 12 Mar. 2024
Film-school student Haynes always imitates better directors — Fassbinder’s social melodrama, Joseph Losey’s studies of decadence (pilfering the infelicitous piano score from Losey’s The Go-Between, from 1971).
—Armond White, National Review, 10 Jan. 2024
Dallas American politics lately feels like an endless game of—pardon the infelicitous word—delegitimation.
—Barton Swaim, wsj.com, 18 Apr. 2023
The New York bill would implement a concept called extended producer responsibility, an incredibly infelicitous recycling term.
—Michael Kimmelman, New York Times, 27 Jan. 2021
That grid revision unfortunately resulted in some infelicitous words being added to the puzzle.
—New York Times, 3 Feb. 2020
Despite the infelicitous coincidence of the election date with Easter — which would normally have been expected to depress turnout — turnout actually ticked slightly upward from recent contests, to 67 percent.
—Amy Erica Smith, Vox, 2 Apr. 2018
As in video games, the action is lurid, hyperkinetic, and gruesomely violent, with nods to Grand Theft Auto and a comparably infelicitous treatment of the few women characters who show up.
—Chicago Reader, 12 Oct. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for infelicitous
Adjective
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The accusations include inappropriate touching and forcibly kissing an intern.Steve Bittenbender | The Center Square contributor, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 23 Dec. 2024
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This, of course, does not excuse inappropriate behavior toward customers.Tomas Gorny, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Human services settings can suffer tremendously from unsuitable employees, who may jeopardize the health, safety or dignity of those in their care.Debra Rinell, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
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That alone makes rainbow eucalyptus unsuitable for most yards, but this Southeast Asia native is also an invasive pest in the southernmost portions of the U.S. To avoid issues, some people are growing rainbow eucalyptus indoors.Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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In early November, St. Philip officials reported to the Diocese of Nashville Safe Environment Office that a teen in the parish had made a report of improper touching involving Garcia.Andy Humbles, The Tennessean, 20 Dec. 2024
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Defense lawyers said that speech included a series of improper and prejudicial comments against the defendants and their legal team, poisoning any potential jurors against them.Kate Brumback, Los Angeles Times, 19 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Common issues include invoices being addressed to the wrong legal entity, missing postal addresses, incorrect purchase order numbers, or errors in the tax treatment of transactions.Aleksandra Bal, Forbes, 22 Dec. 2024
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The issues with the retaining wall, also known as a toe wall, is the result of steel pilings being bent during installation, and the problem with the transportation corridor was caused by the incorrect type of soil being used as fill.Andrew Brown, Hartford Courant, 20 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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And two, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with Chandler’s A-to-Z bookends!Bob Sassone, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024
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The first was a clever dink over Dean Henderson, the second was struck cleanly across the goalkeeper, and Jesus then sent him the wrong way after running half the length of the pitch for the third.Art de Roché, The Athletic, 19 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Some artists and publishers are unhappy with the way their content is being scraped freely by companies like OpenAI and Google to train their large language models — AI models trained on huge quantities of data to generate humanlike responses.Ryan Browne, CNBC, 17 Dec. 2024
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Cronin — who had to cancel some summer shows this year due to unspecified health issues — further acknowledges that there’s acrimony between he and Hall, and he’s been unhappy with some of the social media discourse blaming him for the end of the REO Speedwagon name.Gary Graff, Billboard, 16 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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But that also would mean keeping the grossly unfit Patel from being confirmed.Orlando Sentinel and South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Boards, Orlando Sentinel, 14 Dec. 2024
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In April, the indictment says, Feldstein failed a Shin Bet security-clearance check and was found unfit to handle highly classified material.Gershom Gorenberg, The Atlantic, 25 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near infelicitous
Cite this Entry
“Infelicitous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/infelicitous. Accessed 31 Dec. 2024.
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