Meaning & use
unamiable
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Meanings
adjectivecomparableformal
Not friendly or pleasant in manner; hard to like.
Grammar: Used to describe people or their behavior; can be used before a noun or after a linking verb.
Patterns
- an unamiable person
- be unamiable to someone
Our new neighbor seemed unamiable at first, but she turned out to be shy.
He gave an unamiable reply and walked away without a smile.
The manager's unamiable attitude made the staff afraid to ask questions.
adjectivecomparableformal
Unpleasant or disagreeable in character or tone.
Grammar: Can describe things like remarks, expressions, or atmospheres, not just people.
Patterns
- an unamiable remark
- an unamiable expression
She made an unamiable comment about his cooking, which upset him.
The meeting had an unamiable atmosphere from the start.
His unamiable tone suggested he did not want to be there.
Word forms
| comparative | more unamiable |
|---|---|
| superlative | most unamiable |
Common combinations
- unamiable disposition
- His unamiable disposition made it hard for him to keep friends.
- unamiable character
- The novel's hero is an unamiable character with few redeeming qualities.
- unamiable manner
- She spoke in an unamiable manner that put everyone on edge.
- seem unamiable
- He can seem unamiable when he is tired, but he is really kind.
Synonyms and how they differ
- unfriendly
- More common and less formal; it focuses on lack of warmth, while unamiable also suggests an unpleasant nature.
- disagreeable
- Stronger and more general; it can describe things as well as people, but it often implies active unpleasantness.
- surly
- Suggests a bad-tempered, rude manner, often shown in expressions or brief replies; unamiable is broader.
Opposites
Word family
- amiable adjective
- Friendly and pleasant; the opposite of unamiable.
- amiability noun
- The quality of being friendly and pleasant.
- amiably adverb
- In a friendly and pleasant way.
Commonly confused: unamiable or unamicable?
unamiable vs unamicable
Unamicable means not friendly in a legal or formal dispute (e.g., an unamicable divorce), while unamiable describes a person's general character.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'unamiable' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Unamiable is an adjective describing a person's unfriendly manner, so it fits after 'is' in sentence B. Sentence An is wrong because unamiable describes people, not weather. Sentences C and D are wrong because unamiable cannot be used as an adverb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “unamiable”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.