underemployed

adjective

un·​der·​em·​ployed ˌən-dər-im-ˈplȯid How to pronounce underemployed (audio)
: having less than full-time, regular, or adequate employment

Examples of underemployed in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In fact, underemployed graduates’ salaries are closer to those of high school diploma holders than workers employed in college-level jobs. Preston Cooper, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024 Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, policymakers in both parties came to see underemployed African-American men less as an object of economic reform and more as a danger to public safety to be controlled through militarized policing and mass imprisonment. Ben Zdencanovic, TIME, 4 Nov. 2024 Help disadvantaged populations with job training and support for the underemployed and unemployed youth and adults. Silvia Solis, The Arizona Republic, 29 Oct. 2024 The report also delves into how to help adults enroll in or return to college, such as: 🗣 Allocating resources to offer college and career advising to underemployed and unemployed residents. Steph Solis, Axios, 16 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for underemployed 

Word History

First Known Use

1908, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of underemployed was in 1908

Dictionary Entries Near underemployed

Cite this Entry

“Underemployed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/underemployed. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

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