1
as in barren
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
crop rotation had prevented the farmland from becoming unproductive
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2
as in unsuccessful
producing no results
her attempts to write a novel have been unproductive
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of unproductive
Because drivers spending a minute or two searching for a package can rack up hour of unproductive time.
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Gene Marks, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024
Basically, Harris wants more of the same unfair, unproductive tax handouts.
—Veronique De Rugy, Twin Cities, 16 Oct. 2024
The merged company has proposed converting two old, unproductive oil fields in Kern County into California’s first carbon capture and storage sites.
—Nayamin Martinez, The Mercury News, 11 Oct. 2024
Moving unproductive money to produce better outcomes is a win-win.
—Madeleine Parrish, The Arizona Republic, 2 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for unproductive 
Gene Marks, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024
Basically, Harris wants more of the same unfair, unproductive tax handouts.
—Veronique De Rugy, Twin Cities, 16 Oct. 2024
The merged company has proposed converting two old, unproductive oil fields in Kern County into California’s first carbon capture and storage sites.
—Nayamin Martinez, The Mercury News, 11 Oct. 2024
Moving unproductive money to produce better outcomes is a win-win.
—Madeleine Parrish, The Arizona Republic, 2 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for unproductive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unproductive
Adjective
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The result is a barren playa, wide swaths of sand and earth.Shaun McKinnon, The Arizona Republic, 28 Oct. 2024
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In his latest novel, Annihilation, his protagonists wander through that barren world, disoriented, looking vainly for an exit.Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 24 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Attempts to reach Board of Elections officials about Ike's case Tuesday night were unsuccessful.Amber Hunt, The Enquirer, 6 Nov. 2024
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Momentum then seemed to stall, and Meta filed an unsuccessful motion to dismiss.Adriana Lee, WWD, 4 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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The rolling hills of Laikipia, located on the equator, give way to the vast, desolate sand dunes of the Suguta Valley below, before lakes flooded with flamingos come into view.Shaun Stanley, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2024
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Pedro Páramo, which is considered one of the two frontrunners to represent Mexico at the Academy Awards, transports its audience to Comala, where a desolate Mexican town hauntingly blurs the lines between life and death.Travis Bean, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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After a full year of fighting, efforts to restore peace have proven futile so far, and mitigating the conflict's worst impacts continues to be a daily struggle.Shannon K. Kingston, ABC News, 7 Oct. 2024
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Defending himself, Musk said it was meant merely to highlight how futile such an endeavor would be.Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Unfortunately, in recent years, Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) has embraced and promoted an impoverished worldview regarding gender and sexuality.Enquirer staff, The Enquirer, 29 Oct. 2024
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On an international level, too..., one country’s climate response can easily leave another country impoverished, either through neglect, foolishness or outright malevolence.Saima S. Iqbal, Scientific American, 24 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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These latest such initiatives focus on linking cookies to devices and apps, rendering thefts useless.Zak Doffman, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024
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Elevators stopped working between floors, stoplights stopped working at intersections and life-saving pacemakers were rendered useless.Mars King, Twin Cities, 30 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Trump, for one thing, had a favorable set of issues behind him and the Republican Party: Biden had seen poor favorability and approval ratings throughout his term in office, despite scoring several legislative wins, including a bipartisan infrastructure deal that had previously eluded Trump.Todd Spangler, Detroit Free Press, 6 Nov. 2024
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Basically that poor enforcement had bred serious disrespect for the law, or at least a misunderstanding of it.Tax Notes Staff, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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This anti-waste brand upcycles materials, and was founded by Kisa Sky Shiga.Nadja Sayej, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2022
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Fanning out like urban guerrillas through Paris’ darkened streets well after midnight, the anti-waste activists shinny up walls and drain pipes, reaching for switches to turn off the lights. Click.The Christian Science Monitor, The Christian Science Monitor, 3 Aug. 2022
Thesaurus Entries Near unproductive
Cite this Entry
“Unproductive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unproductive. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
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