Unsuccessful

How to spell unsuccessful

12 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce unsuccessful

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does unsuccessful mean?

1. adjectiveNot achieving the intended aim or result; failing to succeed.

Unsuccessful in a sentence

• His first attempt to start the business was completely unsuccessful.

• After several unsuccessful interviews, she finally landed a job offer.

Where does unsuccessful come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word is built on 'success', which comes from the Latin successus, the noun formed from the verb succedere, meaning literally 'to come up after' or 'to go up close behind', from sub 'under, up to' and cedere 'to go or move'. In Latin the idea was of one thing following or coming up after another, and from there it shifted to mean a favourable outcome, the result that comes after an effort. English took 'success' in the sixteenth century, and the adjective 'successful' soon followed, with the native prefix un- and the suffix -ful added to mean 'not full of good outcome'. The same cedere 'to go' root sits inside a large family of English words including 'proceed', 'recede', and 'succeed'. The classic spelling trap is buried in the middle: the doubled letters of 'success', with two c's and two s's, must survive intact even though the prefix and suffix make the word long and easy to rush.

How the word is built

• un- (not)
• success (from Latin successus: an advance, a good outcome)
• -ful (full of, characterised by)