as in shrill
marked by or producing a harsh combination of sounds
a very unmusical chorus of squawks from the angry ravens
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Recent Examples of unmusical
Those songs remind Omara of real people and real events, political interludes whose senselessness and brutality have left unmusical lacunae in her life.
—
Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2023
His parents were unmusical Russian-Jewish immigrants who ran various businesses with mixed success.
—The Economist, 3 Oct. 2019
Paradoxically, then, the man most involved in the development of the electric guitar was the unmusical Leo Fender.
—David Kirby, WSJ, 17 Jan. 2019
The controversy of Schoenberg’s serialist works—the overwhelming reaction to them as ugly, nightmarish, simply unmusical—shows how firmly tonality had come to condition habits of listening.
—Paul Grimstad, The New Republic, 21 June 2018
Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2023
His parents were unmusical Russian-Jewish immigrants who ran various businesses with mixed success.
—The Economist, 3 Oct. 2019
Paradoxically, then, the man most involved in the development of the electric guitar was the unmusical Leo Fender.
—David Kirby, WSJ, 17 Jan. 2019
The controversy of Schoenberg’s serialist works—the overwhelming reaction to them as ugly, nightmarish, simply unmusical—shows how firmly tonality had come to condition habits of listening.
—Paul Grimstad, The New Republic, 21 June 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unmusical
Adjective
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There are many reasons to visit New Orleans, from po' boys filled with heaps of fried shrimp spilling out of pillowy soft French bread, the shrill trills of brass trumpets, and the constant bustle of revelers across the city.—
Kristin Braswell,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Mar. 2025
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He’s gone up higher for other roles before, like his shrill turn as a rotten southern preacher in The Devil All the Time and his sassy French accent in The King.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
13 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Uniformity In Spectral Reflectance: Satellites that acquire images at the same hour and angle are inherently less noisy and therefore the computer vision models’ accuracies improve.—
Elizabeth Duffy,
Forbes,
11 Mar. 2025
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Gas weed eaters have more power than electric or battery-powered weed eaters but are also much noisier.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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There’s no denying the fact that Severance (nearing the end of its sophomore season on Apple TV+) has refined priceless television gold from dissonant contradiction.—
Josh Weiss,
Forbes,
10 Mar. 2025
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Thus, the best skinny jeans will boast a lower front rise and a slightly higher back rise to accommodate the dissonant sitting and standing coverage requirements.—
BestReviews,
The Mercury News,
6 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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This is notable, given that post-Covid brick and mortar shopping has generally become so unpleasant, it’s given rise to the need for a personal shopper.—
Jennifer Leigh Parker,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
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Less a song than a gag, every individual element is unpleasant: single-entendre lyrics; vocals and synths that aren’t even in the same key; and the less said about Space Cowboy’s guest verse, the better.—
Kristen S. Hé,
Vulture,
19 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Every vintage bathroom can benefit from a metallic accent.—
Emily Williams,
Better Homes & Gardens,
21 Mar. 2025
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Watching Malkovich, in his 70s, make vulgar pelvic thrusts at his visitors while wearing a weird metallic top really doesn’t inspire dread.—
Mark Kennedy,
Boston Herald,
20 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Setting Discordant Personal Goals A 2023 study published in Current Psychology finds that partners’ inharmonious goals can have detrimental effects on relationships.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
29 Mar. 2024
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For sixteen hours a week, Valentine hopes to share some melody in a place that, for some, can feel inharmonious.—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
24 July 2021
Adjective
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Of the collection, Sundy Praia is the most luxurious, with 15 tented villas set where the cacophonous jungle meets the tawny coast.—
Stephanie Vermillion,
Travel + Leisure,
18 Mar. 2025
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The market’s message and intentions are always worth debating — especially so during an intense pullback, with cacophonous policy headlines and piqued investor emotions animating the action day to day.—
Michael Santoli,
CNBC,
8 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unmusical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unmusical. Accessed 25 Mar. 2025.
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