unpolitic

1 8.9

Not showing good judgment when dealing with people or situations

adjective
/ˌʌnˈpɒlɪtɪk/

Formal

: imprudente

His comments were quite unpolitic during the meeting.

Examples

Her unpolitic remarks offended several members of the team.
It would be unpolitic to bring up that topic at the meeting.
Making such an unpolitic decision could damage your reputation.
It's unpolitic to criticize your boss in public.
His comments during the meeting were unpolitic and offended many of his colleagues.
It's considered unpolitic to criticize your boss in front of others.
Being so direct in her criticism was unpolitic, as it alienated potential supporters.

Synonyms

impolitic

vsunpolitic

Formal

3 8.4

Not a wise or careful action in that situation

is a general lack of both judgment and tact across situations

undiplomatic

vsunpolitic

1 7.0

Not careful about hurting other people's feelings in sensitive situations

includes poor judgment and wisdom, not only lacking practical diplomacy

untactful

vsunpolitic

1 7.2

Not careful about other people's feelings when you speak or act, making others feel bad

involves both bad judgment and missing tact rather than mere insensitivity

Antonyms

politic

Formal

6 7.2

Careful and polite in words and actions to avoid upsetting people and gain an advantage

How Diplomatic

diplomatic

28 4.4

politic

Formal

6 7.2

prudent

84 6.2

unpolitic

Formal

1 8.9

Surface Forms

unpolitic positive

Morphology

unpolitic = politic (transparent) = un + politic

A straightforward negation formed by the productive prefix 'un-' attached to the adjective 'politic', yielding the opposite meaning.

Etymology

Unpolitic is formed from the negative un- plus politic, which shares the same root as politics and politician and comes from a word for the 'city' or public life. So politic came to mean 'wise or careful about people and public matters', and unpolitic means not wise, not careful, or not tactful.