incompetent

[ in-kom-pi-tuhnt ]

adjective

1. not competent; lacking qualification or ability; incapable:

   an incompetent candidate.

   Synonyms: unfit, inadequate, unqualified

   Antonyms: qualified, able

2. characterized by or showing incompetence:

   His incompetent acting ruined the play.

3. Law.
   1. being unable or legally unqualified to perform specified acts or to be held legally responsible for such acts.
   2. inadmissible, as evidence.

noun

1. an incompetent person; a mentally deficient person.
2. Law. a person lacking power to act with legal effectiveness.

incompetent

/ ɪnˈkɒmpɪtənt /

adjective

1. not possessing the necessary ability, skill, etc to do or carry out a task; incapable
2. marked by lack of ability, skill, etc
3. law not legally qualified

   an incompetent witness

4. (of rock strata, folds, etc) yielding readily to pressure so as to undergo structural deformation

noun

1. an incompetent person

Derived Forms

• inˈcompetently, adverb
• inˈcompetence, noun

Other Words From

• in·compe·tent·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of incompetent¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Late Latin incompetent- (stem of incompetēns ) “unsuitable.” See in- ³, competent

Synonym Study

See incapable.

Example Sentences

“Gaetz is not only totally incompetent for this job, he doesn’t have the character. He is a person of moral turpitude.”

From Los Angeles Times

Her actions enraged Trump, who called her "racist," "grossly incompetent" and a "total disaster."

From Salon

After all, what could be worse than an incompetent, narcissistic, megalomaniac billionaire taking control of the United States?

From Slate

All of us reading this right now were alive during Trump’s cruel, incompetent presidency, and all of us saw what happened on Jan. 6, 2021.

From Slate

Morsi was an awful, incompetent leader, but the country’s authoritarian elites simply could not countenance the messy consequences of participatory democracy.

From Slate

Related Words

• amateurish
• helpless
• inadequate
• incapable
• ineffectual
• inefficient
• inept
• inexperienced
• unqualified
• unskilled
• useless