unsuccessfuladjective
uk/ˌʌn.səkˈses.fəl/us/ˌʌn.səkˈses.fəl/B2 not achieving the hoped for result; not successful:
They made several unsuccessful attempts to reach the men.
His application was unsuccessful.
More examples
- Her bid for re-election was unsuccessful.
- Attempts to trace the whereabouts of a man seen leaving the scene of the crime have so far been unsuccessful.
- Our firm stands to lose a lot of money if the deal is unsuccessful.
- We are sorry to inform you that your application has been unsuccessful.
- We have been unsuccessful in finding a replacement.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Unsuccessful (people and things)
- abortive
- achiever
- barren
- be dead in the water idiom
- botched
- counterproductive
- flatline
- frustrated
- futile
- go/get/head nowhere idiom
- inauspicious
- lame duck
- rope
- small-time
- stillborn
- struggling
- the doldrums
- unavailing
- unglued
- washed up
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unsuccessfully
adverb uk/ˌʌn.səkˈses.fəl.i/us/ˌʌn.səkˈses.fəl.i/