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unmarketable

unmarketable

1 6.1
Hard to sell because buyers do not want it
  • adjective
  • /ʌnˈmɑrkɪtəbl/
translation icon : no comercializable
  • The resulting damage makes the fruit unmarketable.
  • unmarketable fruit
  • make the crop unmarketable

Examples

  • The resulting damage makes the fruit unmarketable.

  • To growers, it's a costly, unpredictable blight that renders its plant victims a yellow, wilted heap of vines, leaves, and runners with unmarketable fruit.

    Academic text (1997)
  • The rural population could not afford the unmarketable goods that the regime had expected them to absorb.

    Academic text (1993)
  • Multiple styles make a photographer and his work unrecognizable and unmarketable.

    Academic text (2006)
  • Imported fruits are sold at low prices, while the fruits produced in our own provinces are heavily unmarketable.

    Academic text (2000)
  • In addition, because government safety restrictions ban the catching or sale of fish contaminated with pesticide residues, such unmarketable fish are considered an economic loss.

    Academic text (1992)
  • The eggs hatch and produce wiggly medfly larvae that develop inside the fruit, feeding on the flesh and making it unmarketable.

    Academic text (2000)
  • "A packer of citrus, stone fruit, and grapes estimated that 20% to 50% of the produce he handles is unmarketable but perfectly edible," the report says.

    Blog text (30)
  • Sorting of commercial catches was not common in 1988, but in 1989, most Oregon catches were sorted at sea by fishermen to remove unmarketable or small hagfish.

    Academic text (1993)
  • The EPA says 34 million tons of unmarketable produce and table scraps went into landfills in 2010.

Synonyms

untradeable
vsunmarketable
1 6.0

People cannot buy, sell, or exchange it

covers general unsuitability for sale rather than exchange limits
unvendible
vsunmarketable
9.9

Not fit to sell because it is damaged or spoiled

is a general term for not able to be sold
unmerchantable
vsunmarketable
9.9

Not good enough to sell in a shop because of damage or spoilage

applies generally to anything unsuitable for sale
unsalable
vsunmarketable
6.5

A thing too damaged or unwanted for people to buy

means simply that it is not suitable for sale
untradable
vsunmarketable
  • Specialized
5.7

You cannot buy or sell it in a market

focuses on being unsuitable for sale rather than trading restrictions

Antonyms

25 3.8

Able to be sold because many people want it

3 3.1

Good enough for people to want to buy

How Marketable

best-selling
84 2.7
marketable
25 3.8
desirable
121 3.2
unmarketable
1 6.1

Surface Forms

unmarketable positive

Morphology

unmarketable = marketable (transparent) = un + market + able

The meaning is clearly derived from 'marketable' by adding the prefix 'un-' to indicate negation.

Etymology

Unmarketable is built from three parts: un- meaning 'not', market meaning 'a place to buy or sell', and -able meaning 'able to'. So, unmarketable describes something that is 'not able to be sold'.