- not likely to happen or be true; improbable
- not likely to succeed; not promising
Origin of unlikely
Middle English unlikly, probably based on Old Norse ?l?kligr improbably: he may, not unlikely, join us
adjective
The definition of unlikely is something that is probably not going to happen or that has a very slim chance of occurring.
The chance of snow in June in Florida is an example of something that would be described as unlikely.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
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"unlikely." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 05 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/unlikely>.
APA Style
unlikely. (n.d.). Retrieved December 05th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/unlikely
unlikely
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"unlikely." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 05 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/unlikely>.
APA Style
unlikely. (n.d.). Retrieved December 05th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/unlikely
unlikely
adjective
un·like·li·er, un·like·li·est- Not likely; improbable.
- Not promising; likely to fail.
Related Forms:
- un·like′li·ness
noun
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"unlikely." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 05 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/unlikely>.
APA Style
unlikely. (n.d.). Retrieved December 05th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/unlikely
Adjective
(comparative unlikelier or more unlikely, superlative unlikeliest or most unlikely)
- Not likely; improbable; not to be reasonably expected; as, an unlikely event; the thing you mention is very unlikely. Not holding out a prospect of success; likely to fail; unpromising; as, unlikely means.
- It's very unlikely that you'll be able to walk perfectly after being in a cast for six months.
Adverb
- In an improbable manner.
Noun
(plural unlikelies)
- Something or somebody considered unlikely.
Origin
un- +"Ž likely
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"unlikely." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 05 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/unlikely>.
APA Style
unlikely. (n.d.). Retrieved December 05th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/unlikely
Sentence Examples
- It was an unlikely spot for water.
- She doesn't understand how unlikely that is.
- It seems not unlikely therefore that Craig may have accompanied the king in his visit to Uranienburg.
- It seemed unlikely that he would travel so many miles to get her, and then give up.
- Again, it is not unlikely that the Politics was arranged in the traditional order of books by Theophrastus, and that this is the meaning of the curious title occurring in the list of Aristotle's works as given by Diogenes Laertius, rroXcTCKns IcKpoavEC.os ws OeocApa6Tov a'13'y'8'E'srrt', which agrees with the Politics in having eight books.
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Words near unlikely in the dictionary
- unlikely
- unliken
- unlikened
- unlikeness