underpowered

adjective

un·​der·​pow·​ered ˌən-dər-ˈpau̇(-ə)rd How to pronounce underpowered (audio)
1
: driven by an engine of insufficient power
2
: having or supplied with insufficient power

Examples of underpowered in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Amazon and Google launched theirs last year, but Alexa Plus is only just starting to get it right, and Google’s Gemini for Home, an underpowered version of Gemini, is a confusing mess of capabilities. — Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, The Verge, 12 Oct. 2026 Most modern players with a single-hander are underpowered on that wing. — Charlie Eccleshare, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026 Google's ChromeOS operating system powers these laptops, and it's designed to get peak performance out of underpowered hardware. — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 26 Aug. 2026 Ambitiously reaching past satire toward psychological revelation, the play piles on plot twists but offers thin, inconsistent character work and a retrograde climax, leaving its portrait of American familial dysfunction strangely underpowered. — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 21 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for underpowered

Word History

First Known Use

1905, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of underpowered was in 1905

Rhymes for underpowered

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Browse Nearby Words

underpopulation
underpowered
underpower relay
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Cite this Entry

“Underpowered.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/underpowered. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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