tasteless

adjective

taste·​less ˈtāst-ləs 

1

a

: having no taste : insipid

tasteless vegetables

b

: arousing no interest : dull

2

: not having or exhibiting good taste

a tasteless joke

tastelessly adverb

tastelessness noun

Synonyms

• coarse
• common
• crass
• crude
• gross
• ill-bred
• illiberal [archaic]
• incult
• insensible
• low
• lowbred
• lowbrow
• raffish
• rough
• rough-hewn
• roughneck
• rude
• rugged
• uncouth
• uncultivated
• uncultured
• unpolished
• unrefined
• vulgar

Examples of tasteless in a Sentence

a vulgar and tasteless publicity stunt

Recent Examples on the Web

Setting aside the general question of how necessary this show is to begin with, nothing here comes across as particularly tasteless. —Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 29 Oct. 2024

Who is Tony Hinchcliffe? Hinchcliffe, raised in Youngstown, Ohio, is a stand-up comedian who specializes in the roast style, in which comedians take the podium to needle a celebrity victim with personal and often tasteless jokes. —Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 28 Oct. 2024

Companies like Ripple, Sprinkle, and Ebb are making increasingly tasteless and odorless powders with relatively fast activation times. —Rowan Briggs, The Mercury News, 15 Oct. 2024

Plenty of people would call it gaudy and outré, an immature demand for attention or a tasteless attempt to secure superficial status. —Eleanor Pringle, Fortune Europe, 9 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

tasteless

adjective

taste·​less ˈtāst-ləs 

1

: lacking flavor : flat

tasteless soup

2

: not having or showing good taste

a tasteless joke

tastelessly adverb

tastelessness noun