undeserving

adjective

un·​de·​serv·​ing ˌən-di-ˈzər-viŋ 

: not deserving: such as

a

: lacking merit : not worthy of praise, assistance, attention, etc.

selfish, undeserving people

The natural history of women's friendships is by no means a thin or undeserving subject.

—Barbara Kingsolver

b

: not deserving something specified

… circumstances of brutal outrage, of which poor Jean was in many respects wholly undeserving.

—Sir Walter Scott

I do not mean to say that medicine is blameless … or undeserving of criticism.

—Margaret Talbot

undeservingly adverb

Examples of undeserving in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The underlying justification for their mastery of this bountiful, beautiful semi-tropic place was the conviction that their predecessors — native Americans, Spanish, Mexican — were unappreciative and undeserving, unlike the grateful and energetic Yankee. —Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2022

More undeserving teams making October. —Paul Daugherty, The Enquirer, 15 Sep. 2021

Scream 3 is often dealt a short shrift by series fans and critics alike, but the flack is largely undeserving. —Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 11 Jan. 2023

As the commotion died down, the small riverside community seemed an undeserving, even senseless, target of Russian rockets, as there were no signs of Ukrainian troops in the area. —David Guttenfelder Oleksandr Chubko, New York Times, 15 Dec. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

1549, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing undeserving

• undeserving poor