Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The state of being unlikely or improbable; improbability.
  • noun Something unlikely.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The state of being unlikely or improbable; improbability.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun Absence of likelihood.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Absence of likelihood; the state of being unlikely or improbable; improbability.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the improbability of a specified outcome

Etymologies

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Examples

  • The failures of the system are attributed to causes within the world view of the those receiving the welfare, namely the unlikelihood of that class of people being honest, and not the fact that the administrators of the program were dishonest.

    On Being Bad 2009

  • What you are referring to is the unlikelihood of those results assuming that blacks are exactly equal to whites in the knowledge of firefighting techniques and cognitive skills that this test measured.

    The Volokh Conspiracy » The “Racist” Charge 2010

  • The modest widening in New Zealand's net international investment position once again highlights "the long-standing vulnerability for the NZ economy and the unlikelihood of a credit rating upgrade any time soon in our eyes," Goldman Sachs economist Philip Borkin said in a note.

    New Zealand Current Account Deficit Widens Lucy Craymer 2011

  • By contrast, sentiment among U.S. consumers dropped again in June, highlighting the extreme unlikelihood that the Fed will raise rates anytime soon.

    Hopes for Greece Lift Euro Andrew J. Johnson 2011

  • Their story is one of unlikelihood and guts, with echoes of the famous Jamaican bobsleigh team at the 1988 Calgary Games.

    GB women's volleyball team determined to get to 2012 Olympics 2011

  • Given Luis Suárez's absence for another seven matches, and the unlikelihood of Carlos Tevez ever again appearing in the colours of Manchester City, both these teams would appear to have a short-term problem in the same vital area.

    Manchester City and Liverpool need a solution for striking flaws | Richard Williams 2012

  • I remember Chris Van Allsburg musing about the unlikelihood of families gathering around the cozy glow of the computer screen to "read" the cd-rom version of The Polar Express.

    Archive 2009-08-01 Roger Sutton 2009

  • MQuinn: The emailer could have easily prefaced her comments with a paragraph explicitly expressing the unlikelihood that African Americans are inferior, or that any disparities in IQ testing are likely the products of environment, or some other caveat that softened the blow of herÂemail.

    The Volokh Conspiracy » 1. Science, Faith, and Not Ruling Out Possibilities 2010

  • I remember Chris Van Allsburg musing about the unlikelihood of families gathering around the cozy glow of the computer screen to "read" the cd-rom version of The Polar Express.

    Digital reviewing Roger Sutton 2009

  • The emailer could have easily prefaced her comments with a paragraph explicitly expressing the unlikelihood that African Americans are inferior, or that any disparities in IQ testing are likely the products of environment, or some other caveat that softened the blow of her email.

    The Volokh Conspiracy » 1. Science, Faith, and Not Ruling Out Possibilities 2010

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