unpromising
adjective
un·prom·is·ing
ˌən-ˈprä-mə-siŋ 
: appearing unlikely to prove worthwhile or result favorably
an unpromising beginning
Examples of unpromising in a Sentence
Things got off to an unpromising start.
She can do a lot with unpromising material.
Recent Examples on the Web
The hype for this year’s outing was undermined by what looked to be an unpromising matchup; at 6-5, Michigan was a 20.5-point underdog heading into its road trip to No. 2 Ohio State (10-1).
—
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 4 Dec. 2024
Johnson campaigned against an unpromising backdrop: nearly ten years of austerity cuts under successive Tory governments, doubts about his flamboyant character, and fratricidal division within his party over Brexit.
—Pippa Norris, Foreign Affairs, 31 Jan. 2020
That led the Initiative in an unpromising direction.
—Steve Denning, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024
The impression that emerges from the book, by default, is that the author sees the world outside North America as a larger version of Antarctica: alien, uniform, unpromising, and harmless.
—Michael Mandelbaum, Foreign Affairs, 1 May 2010
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Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 4 Dec. 2024
Johnson campaigned against an unpromising backdrop: nearly ten years of austerity cuts under successive Tory governments, doubts about his flamboyant character, and fratricidal division within his party over Brexit.
—Pippa Norris, Foreign Affairs, 31 Jan. 2020
That led the Initiative in an unpromising direction.
—Steve Denning, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024
The impression that emerges from the book, by default, is that the author sees the world outside North America as a larger version of Antarctica: alien, uniform, unpromising, and harmless.
—Michael Mandelbaum, Foreign Affairs, 1 May 2010
See all Example Sentences for unpromising
Dictionary Entries Near unpromising
Cite this Entry
“Unpromising.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unpromising. Accessed 17 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
unpromising
adjective
un·prom·is·ing
ˌən-ˈpräm-ə-siŋ
ˈən-
: appearing unlikely to prove worthwhile or successful
unpromisingly
adverb
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