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uncommercial

uncommercial

1 7.5
Not likely to sell well or make money
  • adjective
  • /ʌnˈkəmɜrʃəl/
translation icon : no comercial
  • Many of his films are considered uncommercial, focusing on social issues rather than financial gain.

Examples

  • This is Jeff Dugan dug in for another week of music that's gonna keep you high on the uncommercial sound of Q-S-K-Y.

  • And a French bistro that departs from the typical hackneyed menu and serves all the wonderful but uncommercial dishes you used to be able to find in the French countryside: lamb's.

    Blog text (20)
  • Even when art societies held shows in dealers' galleries, as was frequently the case by the late 1880s, they retained for Cardon the air of an uncommercial affair because they offered works not made to compete noisily for the attention of the crowd at the Salon but to speak softly in the refined sensory register of an elite or personal space.

    Academic text (1991)
  • The artist's latest exhibition features entirely uncommercial pieces that challenge the norms of the art market.

  • This book is deeply uncommercial, prioritizing literary expression over mainstream appeal.

Synonyms

unprofitable
vsuncommercial
11 4.9

Not making money for a person or business

is about being unlikely to succeed in business rather than only losing money
noncommercial
vsuncommercial
3 4.4

Not intended to make money

focuses on lack of business purpose rather than on likelihood of profit or success

Antonyms

56 3.2

Made for sale and often of average rather than high quality

How Commercial

lucrative
105 5.6
profitable
191 3.8
commercial
601 3.7
uncommercial
1 7.5

Surface Forms

uncommercial positive

Morphology

uncommercial = commercial (transparent) = un + commercial

The adjective simply negates the meaning of 'commercial' with the productive prefix 'un-', making the sense predictable.

Etymology

The word uncommercial is made of un- meaning 'not' and commercial, which comes from commerce meaning 'trade' or 'business'. So something uncommercial is 'not' likely to bring money or to succeed in business.