UNHEALTHY: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for UNHEALTHY?

Need another word that means the same as “unhealthy”? Find 45 synonyms and 30 related words for “unhealthy” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Unhealthy” are: insalubrious, unhealthful, harmful, detrimental, destructive, injurious, damaging, deleterious, ruinous, malign, noxious, poisonous, baleful, ill, unwell, in poor health, ailing, sick, sickly, poorly, indisposed, unsound, unfit, weak, feeble, frail, delicate, debilitated, infirm, valetudinarian, peaky, out of condition, out of shape, in poor condition, in poor shape, unwholesome, undesirable, morbid, macabre, ghoulish, twisted, warped, depraved, abnormal, unnatural

Unhealthy as an Adjective

Definitions of "Unhealthy" as an adjective

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “unhealthy” as an adjective can have the following definitions:

• Not conducive to good health.
• Not in or exhibiting good health in body or mind.
• Not having or showing good health.
• (of a person's attitude or behaviour) not sensible or well balanced.
• Detrimental to health.
• Harmful to health.

Synonyms of "Unhealthy" as an adjective (45 Words)

abnormal	Departing from the normal in e.g. intelligence and development. Abnormal ambition.
ailing	Somewhat ill or prone to illness. My poor ailing grandmother.
baleful	Threatening harm; menacing. The Florida eagles have a fierce baleful look.
damaging	Having a detrimental effect on someone or something. New cars are less damaging to the environment.
debilitated	Lacking energy or vitality. I became very debilitated with tremendous joint pain.
deleterious	Harmful to living things. Divorce is assumed to have deleterious effects on children.
delicate	Requiring sensitive or careful handling. Delicate negotiations with the big powers.
depraved	Morally corrupt; wicked. Depraved criminals.
destructive	Causing great and irreparable damage. A policy that is destructive to the economy.
detrimental	Tending to cause harm. Moving her could have a detrimental effect on her health.
feeble	Failing to convince or impress. I know it s feeble but I ve never been one to stand up for myself.
frail	Weak in character or morals. The balcony is frail.
ghoulish	Suggesting the horror of death and decay. She told the story with ghoulish relish.
harmful	Causing or capable of causing harm. The ozone layer blocks the harmful rays from the sun.
ill	Presaging ill fortune. Ill manners.
in poor condition	Holding office.
in poor health	Currently fashionable.
in poor shape	Directed or bound inward.
indisposed	Somewhat ill or prone to illness. My mother is indisposed.
infirm	Lacking bodily or muscular strength or vitality. Infirm of purpose give me the daggers.
injurious	Causing or likely to cause damage or harm. Food which is injurious to health.
insalubrious	(of a place) seedy and run-down; unwholesome. A poor area full of insalubrious hotels.
macabre	Shockingly repellent; inspiring horror. Macabre tortures conceived by madmen.
malign	Having or exerting a malignant influence. Prompted by malign motives.
morbid	Suggesting an unhealthy mental state. The treatment of morbid obesity.
noxious	Injurious to physical or mental health. They were overcome by the noxious fumes.
out of condition	Directed outward or serving to direct something outward.
out of shape	Not allowed to continue to bat or run.
peaky	Having or as if having especially high-pitched spots. You re looking a bit peaky a change of scene would do you good.
poisonous	Having the qualities or effects of a poison. There was a poisonous atmosphere at the office.
poorly	Somewhat ill or prone to illness. Feeling poorly.
ruinous	In ruins; dilapidated. A ruinous effect on the environment.
sick	(of an emotion) so intense as to cause one to feel unwell or nauseous. He was sick for a sight of her.
sickly	(of a place or climate) causing or characterized by unhealthiness. A sickly vaporous swamp.
twisted	Forced out of its natural or proper shape; crumpled. Many of the facts seemed twisted out of any semblance to reality.
undesirable	Not worthy of being chosen (especially as a spouse. Legislation excluding undesirable aliens.
unfit	Below the required standards for a purpose. Fat and very unfit.
unhealthful	Not sanitary or healthful. Unhealthful conditions in old apartments with peeling lead based paint.
unnatural	Not in accordance with or determined by nature; contrary to nature. The artificial turf looks an unnatural green.
unsound	Physically unsound or diseased. An unsound limb.
unwell	Somewhat ill or prone to illness. He was admitted to hospital for tests after feeling unwell.
unwholesome	Detrimental to physical or moral well-being. Unwholesome habits like smoking.
valetudinarian	Of or relating to or characteristic of a person who is a valetudinarian. The valetudinarian English.
warped	Used especially of timbers or boards; bent out of shape usually by moisture. Warped wooden planks.
weak	Relating to or denoting the weakest of the known kinds of force between particles which acts only at distances less than about 10 cm is very much weaker than the electromagnetic and the strong interactions and conserves neither strangeness parity nor isospin. A weak stress on the second syllable.

Usage Examples of "Unhealthy" as an adjective

• Unhealthy ulcers.
• An unhealthy obsession with fast cars.
• An unhealthy diet.
• An unhealthy climate.
• An unhealthy diet of fast foods.
• His skin looked pale and unhealthy.

Associations of "Unhealthy" (30 Words)

ailing	Somewhat ill or prone to illness. I went to see my ailing mother.
ailment	An illness, typically a minor one. The doctor diagnosed a common stomach ailment.
asthmatic	A person who suffers from asthma. She is a chronic asthmatic.
catching	The act of detecting something catching sight of something. Her enthusiasm is catching.
consumptive	Relating to the using up of resources. From birth he was sickly and consumptive.
deleterious	Causing harm or damage. Deleterious chemical additives.
delirious	Experiencing delirium. There was a great roar from the delirious crowd.
desperate	Desperately determined. Helpless and desperate as if at the end of his tether.
dyspeptic	Having indigestion or a consequent air of irritable bad temper.
famished	Extremely hungry. The evacuees were famished having had no food for 12 hours.
fetid	Smelling extremely unpleasant. The fetid water of the marsh.
flu	Influenza. She was in bed with flu.
harmful	Causing or capable of causing harm. Too much sun is harmful to the skin.
malnourished	Not being provided with adequate nourishment.
nauseous	Disgusting or offensive. The smell was nauseous.
noisome	Having an extremely offensive smell. A noisome concoction of which cheap port is the basis.
noxious	Harmful, poisonous, or very unpleasant. They were overcome by the noxious fumes.
pallid	(of light) lacking in intensity or brightness; dim or feeble. A pallid ray of winter sun.
pathological	Involving or caused by a physical or mental disease. Glands with a pathological abnormality.
pernicious	Having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way. The pernicious influences of the mass media.
poisonous	(of an animal) producing poison as a means of attacking enemies or prey; venomous. There was a poisonous atmosphere at the office.
queasy	Feeling nausea; feeling about to vomit. In the morning he was still pale and queasy.
ravenous	Devouring or craving food in great quantities. A ravenous appetite.
septic	Denoting a drainage system incorporating a septic tank. A septic sore throat.
sickening	Causing great annoyance or disappointment. It is sickening to think we had done enough to win and then had to leave with nothing.
skinny	A pair of skinny jeans or trousers. His skinny arms.
starving	Suffering from lack of food. The world s starving children.
underweight	Insufficient weight. Underweighted assets.
unwell	Somewhat ill or prone to illness. He was admitted to hospital for tests after feeling unwell.
unwholesome	Detrimental to physical or moral well-being. Unwholesome food.