ungrateful

[ uhn-greyt-fuhl ]

adjective

1. unappreciative; not displaying gratitude; not giving due return or recompense for benefits conferred:

   ungrateful heirs.

2. unpleasant; distasteful; repellent:

   an ungrateful task.

ungrateful

/ ʌnˈɡreɪtfʊl /

adjective

1. not grateful or thankful
2. unrewarding or unpleasant; thankless
3. (of land) failing to increase fertility in response to cultivation

Derived Forms

• unˈgratefully, adverb
• unˈgratefulness, noun

Other Words From

• un·grateful·ly adverb
• un·grateful·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of ungrateful¹

First recorded in 1545–55; un- ¹ + grateful

Example Sentences

They remained unified behind a president who promised to stick it to undocumented immigrants, ungrateful foreign leaders and out-of-touch elitists in academia and the media.

From Los Angeles Times

The speaker went on to bemoan “ungrateful black kids” and Jewish people in the community.

From BBC

But some California leaders see Musk’s stance as ungrateful for the role the state has played in supporting his successes, particularly at Tesla and SpaceX.

From Los Angeles Times

This prompted Minaj to tweet, "The corniest thing you can be is ungrateful. Give thanks."

From Salon

The 54-year-old has just starred in Doctor Cha, a Netflix series about a middle-aged woman who decides to complete her medical training and start work after 20 years of looking after her ungrateful family.

From BBC

Related Words

• selfish