distasteful

adjective

dis·​taste·​ful (ˌ)dis-ˈtāst-fəl 

1

a

: objectionable because offensive to one's personal taste : unpleasant, disagreeable

found the job distasteful

a shady, distasteful character

b

: objectionable because in poor taste, inappropriate, or unethical

a harmless stroking … but it seems oddly distasteful in retrospect

—Richard Sandza et al.

2

: unpleasant to the taste

distasteful unripe fruit

distastefully

(ˌ)dis-ˈtāst-fə-lē 

adverb

distastefulness noun

Synonyms

• brackish
• unappetizing
• unpalatable
• unsavory
• yucky
• yukky

Examples of distasteful in a Sentence

The work was distasteful, but it was the best I could find at the time.

It was a distasteful subject to him.

Recent Examples on the Web

Squirrels find the rhizome roots distasteful and are deterred by the highly perfumed scent of the blooms. —Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 14 Sep. 2024

The transgressive tingle of such sentences has dulled a little over time; the contemporary reader may find their strident fetishism more than a touch distasteful. —Giles Harvey, The New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2024

Steward soon began hearing rumors that college administrators found his book distasteful for its sympathetic portrayal of a prostitute, one of the main characters. —Alessandro Meregaglia, The Conversation, 23 Feb. 2023

Underneath their grand claims of friendship and support, these countries’ relationships are largely transactional, and their cooperation entails tradeoffs and risks that each may find more distasteful over time. —Antony J. Blinken, Foreign Affairs, 1 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1607, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

distasteful

adjective

dis·​taste·​ful dis-ˈtāst-fəl 

: causing displeasure : unpleasant, disagreeable

distastefully

-fə-lē 

adverb

distastefulness noun