Meaning & use
uncooperative
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Not willing to help others or work together toward a shared aim.
Grammar: Used after be or before a noun: an uncooperative witness.
Patterns
- uncooperative with someone
- be uncooperative about something
The witness was uncooperative with the police.
Our neighbor stayed uncooperative about the fence.
An uncooperative team slows every project.
adjectivecomparableinformal
Refusing to behave as asked, or hard to handle, as with a child, animal or object.
Grammar: Informal for stubborn things: an uncooperative printer.
Patterns
- an uncooperative child
The toddler was uncooperative at bedtime.
My uncooperative printer jammed again.
The uncooperative cat refused to enter the carrier.
Word forms
| comparative | more uncooperative |
|---|---|
| superlative | most uncooperative |
Common combinations
- remain uncooperative
- The suspect remained uncooperative.
- uncooperative attitude
- Her uncooperative attitude annoyed everyone.
- uncooperative witness
- An uncooperative witness can delay a case.
- deliberately uncooperative
- He was deliberately uncooperative in the meeting.
Synonyms and how they differ
- unhelpful
- Unhelpful is milder and may just mean not useful, not stubborn.
- obstructive
- Obstructive suggests actively blocking progress, which is stronger than uncooperative.
- stubborn
- Stubborn describes a firm refusal to change, often a personality trait.
- difficult
- Difficult is broader and more casual, covering any hard behavior.
Opposites
Word family
- cooperate verb
- to work together willingly
- cooperation noun
- working together
- cooperative adjective
- willing to help
- uncooperatively adverb
- in an unhelpful, refusing way
Commonly confused: uncooperative or non-cooperative?
uncooperative vs non-cooperative
Non-cooperative is a neutral, formal term for not taking part, while uncooperative often criticizes attitude.
Practice
The patient was ____ and refused to answer any of the nurse's questions.
Choose one answer.
Refusing to answer shows unwillingness to help. Cooperative is the opposite.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “uncooperative”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.