unworthy
/ʌnˈwɝði/adjective, noun
unworthy is spelled U-N-W-O-R-T-H-Y: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.6 times per million words in written English, the 22,362nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, unworthy means “Not worthy; lacking value or merit; worthless” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in unworthy?
| Letters | 8: U-N-W-O-R-T-H-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.6 times per million words; the 22,362nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is unworthy?
Unworthy appears 1.6 times per million words in written English, the 22,362nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce unworthy?
- /ʌnˈwɝði/
Unworthy has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vininn126-unworthy.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of unworthy
- unworthier comparative
- unworthiest superlative
- unworthies plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does unworthy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Not worthy; lacking value or merit; worthless.
noun
- 1
An inadequate person.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Unworthy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense not worthy:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | indigne |
| German | unwürdig |
| Portuguese | indigno |
| Spanish | indigno, desmerecedor |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does unworthy come from?
From Middle English unworthy, equivalent to un- + worthy.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).