Meanings
comparative more unenviable · superlative most unenviable
- Difficult, undesirable, or unpleasant; not to be envied.
Valjean was in the unenviable position of either living with the knowledge an innocent would suffer for his crime or revealing his true identity and going back to prison.
1 more example
There might be a 'train captain' on board, as on the Docklands Light Railway, but this would be an unenviable role on our packed Tube: the train captain would be condemned to live in a permanent rush hour.
2012, Andrew Martin, Underground Overground: A passenger's history of the Tube, Profile Books, →ISBN, page 277
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivehard to deal with; especially causing pain or embarrassment
adjectiveso undesirable as to be incapable of arousing envy
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*né
- Proto-Indo-European*n̥-
- Proto-Germanic*un-
- Proto-West Germanic*un-
- Old Englishun-
- Middle Englishun-
- Englishun-
- Old Frenchenvie
- Middle Englishenvie
- Englishenvy
- Englishenviable
- Englishunenviable
Translations
Ancient Greek ἄζηλος
- ἄζηλος (ázēlos)difficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
Bulgarian незавиден
- незавиден (nezaviden)difficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
Czech nezáviděníhodný
- nezáviděníhodnýdifficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
Finnish ei kadehdittava
- ei kadehdittavadifficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
French peu enviable
- peu enviabledifficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
German wenig beneidenswert, kaum zu beneidend
- wenig beneidenswertdifficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
- kaum zu beneidenddifficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
Greek αζήλευτος
- αζήλευτος (azíleftos)difficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
Polish nie do pozazdroszczenia
- nie do pozazdroszczeniadifficult, undesirable, or unpleasant
Cite this entry
unenviable. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unenviable
“unenviable.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unenviable. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “unenviable,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unenviable.
Source: unenviable on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.