unskillfully

adverb

as in poorly

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for unskillfully
  1. poorly
  2. ineptly
  3. inefficiently
  4. incompetently
  5. artlessly
Adverb
  • A week ago, the Chiefs defense opened so poorly that coordinator Steve Spagnuolo provided a reality check on the sideline in the first quarter.
    — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Even though the score was 27-27 in the fourth quarter and SC's defense seemed to get a stop on a long third down, a trademark poorly timed, and frankly absurd and ridiculous, roughing the passer penalty gave the Ducks a free first down.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of poorly
Adverb
  • The collapse of the Constitution’s balance of powers between three branches of government got us into an unneeded war conducted ineptly.
    — Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 15 Mar. 2026
  • Dancing the Poznan really ineptly, mind you, but dancing nonetheless.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Sep. 2025
Definition of ineptly
Adverb
  • Local solutions can also consume model tokens inefficiently, duplicate efforts and introduce inconsistent security and compliance practices.
    — Fabio Caversan, Forbes.com, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Rather than heating massive reactors inefficiently from the outside or burning methane, the team placed a burner directly inside the reactor to combust a small portion of hydrogen.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of inefficiently
Adverb
  • Clinicians should be working to support us, not fumbling incompetently or making paternalistic determinations.
    — Meg LeDuc, STAT, 23 Sep. 2026
  • As was mentioned in your editorial, the Broward school district has been incompetently managed, wasteful and corrupt for years.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2026
Definition of incompetently
Adverb
  • Lines that seem artlessly off-the-cuff on first pass accrue an unexpected weight and purpose the fourth time through; the countrified guitar lick that sounds so chipper at the start of a song is dripping with melancholy by the end.
    — Stuart Berman, Pitchfork, 4 June 2026
Definition of artlessly
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.

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unskillful
unskillfully
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Cite this Entry

“Unskillfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unskillfully. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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