Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ill-defined

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: 4.33 in modern English

Syllables: il-l-de-fined
IPA

15

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

4

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Poorly defined; blurry, out of focus; lacking a clear boundary.

adj

Defined in an inconsistent way.

Example Sentences

"An ill-defined dislike, a little like jealousy, arose in Henrietta's mind; a little, however, mitigated by observing that the gentleman instantly caught sight of herself; and that, when not absolutely forced to look at his companion, he looked towards her."
"Are you sick, or ill-defined? / Are you lost, or are you just difficult to come by?"

Etymology

From ill + defined.

Inflected Forms

more ill-defined (comparative) most ill-defined (superlative)

Phrases

ill-definedness

Synonyms

fuzzy hazy unclear

Antonyms

well-defined

Questions

What does ill-defined mean?: Poorly defined; blurry, out of focus; lacking a clear boundary.
Where does ill-defined come from?: From ill + defined.

How to pronounce ill-defined

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