1
: not giving response : not responsive
a nonresponsive police force
2
: not adequately addressing or meeting the requirements contained in a request for competitive bids on a contract
deemed the bid to be nonresponsive and rejected it

Examples of nonresponsive 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.
Advertisement In the final phase of dying—a period Barbara Karnes, a hospice nurse and educator since the 1970s, calls labor—many people become nonresponsive. — Angela Haupt, Time, 5 Aug. 2026 After Myers, 29, called the police to report that her 20-month-old daughter was nonresponsive and breathing slowly, officers arrived to find the child lying on the living room floor, according to KMOV. — Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 21 June 2026 Responding officers at the scene found the 46-year-old Martinez, of Nampa, to be nonresponsive, according to the police news release. — Sally Krutzig, Idaho Statesman, 9 June 2026 Many feel that Congress is out of touch, nonresponsive or simply corrupt. — Stephen Gruber-Miller, Des Moines Register, 6 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for nonresponsive

Word History

First Known Use

1845, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of nonresponsive was in 1845

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Cite this Entry

“Nonresponsive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonresponsive. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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