ineligible

C2 Topic:Law & Government
US /ɪnˈɛlɪdʒəbəl/ UK /ɪnˈelɪdʒəbəl/
adj noun Freq #56448

Meanings

  1. 1
    adj

    not qualified or permitted to be chosen, receive something, or take part

    Employees of the organizer are ineligible to enter the competition.

  2. 2
    adj

    dated: unsuitable or undesirable as a choice, especially for marriage, residence, or appointment

    The damp and isolated house was considered an ineligible residence.

  3. 3
    noun

    a person who is not eligible

    The policy divides applicants into eligibles and ineligibles.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 adj · not qualified or permitted... disqualifiedunqualified
2 adj · dated: unsuitable or... unsuitableundesirable
3 noun · a person who is not eligible disqualified person
Word family
Derived forms ineligibilityineligibly
Related forms eligibleelect

Etymology

From French ineligible, formed from in- ('not') plus eligible, ultimately Latin eligere ('to choose, select'). Alongside the modern rule-based sense, nineteenth-century English also used it for a person, place, or option judged unsuitable or undesirable.

Topics

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