dysfunctional

adjective

dys·​func·​tion·​al (ˌ)dis-ˈfəŋ(k)-sh(ə-)nəl 

: characterized by or exhibiting dysfunction: such as

a

: not functioning properly : marked by impaired or abnormal functioning

With 180,000 employees and a $43 billion budget, the department is a collage of 22 distinct government agencies drawn from different corners of the federal organization chart and glued together into a single, largely dysfunctional unit.

—Paul C. Light

This form of anemia develops because the bone marrow is not producing new cells rapidly enough to replace old cells that have become destroyed or otherwise dysfunctional.

—Tom Ewing

This led to a dysfunctional credit market that in important respects soon turned non-functional.

—Warren E. Buffett

b

: characterized by abnormal or unhealthy interpersonal behavior or interaction

dysfunctional relationships

As with any dysfunctional family, it may take an outsider to get a clear picture of the situation.

—Chris Mooney

Did you know?

Dysfunctional and dysfunction have been used for almost a hundred years, often in medical writing ("brain dysfunction", "a dysfunctional liver") but also by social scientists ("a dysfunctional city council", "diplomatic dysfunction"). But they only really entered the general vocabulary in the 1980s, when therapists and talk-show hosts began talking about dysfunctional families. The signs of family dysfunction turned out to be numerous, and it soon began to seem as if pretty much all our families could be called dysfunctional.

Examples of dysfunctional in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Even sympathetic state transportation officials may not fix dysfunctional urban roadways due to limited resources and competing needs that include expensive upgrades to bridges and interstates. —David Zipper, Vox, 13 Nov. 2024

Her dysfunctional parents are not coping with their impending loss well. —Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 8 Nov. 2024

This is the ultimate dysfunctional family story, about a circus troupe whose members abhor normalcy to such a degree that the parents intentionally breed a family of sideshow freaks. —The Week Us, theweek, 5 Nov. 2024

Last Friday night, at a rally in Michigan, former President Donald Trump faced the crowd behind him, paced the stage, and stood in front of a dysfunctional mic that dropped out mid-speech. —Alena Botros, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

dysfunction + -al entry 1, after functional

First Known Use

1915, in the meaning defined above