unacceptable
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.not good enough to be allowed or accepted by others.
adj.failing to meet a required standard or social expectation; deemed intolerable or unsatisfactory.
Simple“The long delays at the airport were completely unacceptable to the passengers.”
In context“The committee found the proposed safety measures to be wholly unacceptable, citing numerous gaps in the emergency evacuation protocols.”
SynonymsAntonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
adj.describing a word or sentence that does not follow the rules of a language.
adj.describing a linguistic form that does not conform to the rules of a specific grammar or the norms of a speech community.
Simple“In English, saying 'he go' is considered unacceptable in formal writing.”
In context“The generative model rejected the string as unacceptable because it violated the core principles of phrase structure within that specific dialect.”
UsageIn linguistics, this is often marked with an asterisk (*) before the sentence.
Synonymsungrammaticalill formedAntonymsgrammaticalwell formed - 03 C2 Proficiency
n.a person or thing that is not accepted by a group.
n.an entity, person, or proposal that has been rejected or deemed unsuitable for inclusion.
Simple“The social club was known for its harsh treatment of unacceptables.”
In context“The archive was divided into two sections: those documents deemed worthy of preservation and the unacceptables destined for the shredder.”
Usage unacceptable public
“I think the cruelty that I've experienced and the positioning of me as this kind of liar and fantasist is totally unacceptable," he told the Times newspaper , external earlier this month.”
“A public inquiry found authorities covered up the scandal and exposed victims to unacceptable risks.”
From Middle English unacceptabylle, equivalent to un- + acceptable.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.