inhospitable

UK/ˌɪnhɒsˈpɪtəbəl/US/ˌɪnhɒsˈpɪtəbəl/

adjectiveB2+Occasional — familiar, but not everyday · #11,181 of 15,258neutral

Inhospitable means unwelcoming to visitors, or harsh to live in. An inhospitable landscape, an inhospitable host, inhospitable conditions.

The landscape sense is the commoner of the two: an inhospitable place is one that will not support life comfortably. Of a person it is a heavy charge in cultures where hospitality is a duty rather than a courtesy.

Definitions of inhospitable

1adjectiveinhospitableUnwelcoming to visitors, or harsh to live in.B2+
“The Arctic is one of the most inhospitable places on Earth.”

inhospitable is a quality.

Where it comes from

Medieval Latin inhospitabilis is in-, not, plus a word from hospes, a guest or host.

Medieval Latin
inhospitābilis
Middle French
inhospitable
English, today
inhospitable

From Middle French inhospitable, from Medieval Latin inhospitābilis. by surface analysis, in- + hospitable.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

inhospitable in the wild

Desert warfare is distinct from other types of warfare in other environments and terrains, in that the desert is generally considered very inhospitable.
Desert warfare
The hot air rising from the lower floors of a building is often retained in attics, further compounding their reputation as inhospitable environments.
Attic
The countryside is inhospitable, with minerals extracted from the salt lake being a major source of income.
Şereflikoçhisar
Despite the rugged and inhospitable surroundings, it is in a protected niche with some flowers and wildlife in summer.
Chandra Taal
The outpost was defended by a battalion of 140 men in extremely hot, inhospitable conditions against an overwhelming native force until they were forced to capitulate.
Siege of Kahun

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

Related words

hospitable

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