unskilful

Not good enough

Unskilful means lacking skill or competence—clumsy, inept, or poorly executed: an unskilful attempt at repair, unskilful hands.

The British spelling; Americans typically write unskillful.

The word appears less often than its synonyms clumsy or incompetent, and carries a slightly formal or literary tone.

amateur

novice

Inexperienced newcomer to field

beginnerOne who lacks experience
inexperiencedLacking practical knowledge
untrainedLacking learned skills

unpracticed · learner · trainee · apprentice · neophyte · rookie · greenhorn · fledgling · newbie · tyro

clumsy

awkward

Lacking grace or ease

fumblingClumsy, uncoordinated handling
bunglingMishandling through incompetence
maladroitLacking physical deftness

ham-handed · heavy-handed · uncoordinated · ungainly · gawky · blundering · lumbering · oafish · inelegant · gauche

incompetent

inept

Lacking skill or competence

incapableLacking requisite ability
inadequateNot sufficient for purpose
unqualifiedLacking required credentials

ineffective · unfit · unproficient · unable · hapless · hopeless · useless · unequal · floundering · struggling

substandard

poor

Lacking sufficient resources

crudeUnpolished, raw state
roughUneven in surface
shoddyOf poor craftsmanship

botched · slapdash · slipshod · careless · haphazard · messy · imprecise · inaccurate · faulty · flawed

Opposites

competence/ability

unskilfulskilful

Having practiced ability

skilled · proficient · capable · competent · adept

refinement/elegance

unskilfulelegant

Gracefully refined, tasteful

polished · graceful · refined · artful · great

training/experience

unskilfultrained

Taught a skill

experienced · seasoned · veteran · professional · qualified

Family

skill, skilled, skillful, unskilled, skillfully, skillfulness, unskillful, skilful, skilfully

Familiarity: Top 1,000,000
Profile: Timeless · Abstract · Negative · Everyday, not technical · Rated G