in·con·ve·nience
ˌin-kən-ˈvē-nyən(t)s 
1
: something that is inconvenient
2
: the quality or state of being inconvenient
in·con·ve·nience
ˌin-kən-ˈvē-nyən(t)s
inconvenienced; inconveniencing
: to cause problems or trouble for : subject to inconvenience
sorry to inconvenience you
Synonyms
Examples of inconvenience in a Sentence
Noun
Needham was sorry to see him go, for although his high-handedness … had caused some inconvenience, his intelligence and courage were of the first water.
—
Simon Winchester, The Man Who Loved China, 2008
Any wish or even longing I might have to see her produced no results; sometimes when she showed up it was actually inconvenient, but frustrated longing and inconvenience both ended the same way …
—Jane Smiley, Good Faith, 2003
Jem knew as well as I that it was difficult to walk fast without stumping a toe, tripping on stones, and other inconveniences, and I was barefooted.
—Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird, 1960
I hope this delay doesn't cause you any inconvenience.
Bridge repairs cannot be done without some inconvenience to the public.
Parking in the city can be a major inconvenience.
The delay was an inconvenience.
Verb
… I could count on one of my aunts to insist that she take me to some far-off corner of Nairobi to find the best bargains, no matter how long the trip took or how much it might inconvenience her.
—Barack Obama, Dreams from My Father, (1995) 2004
Medieval manuscripts are turgid with abbreviations, which favor the copyist although they inconvenience the reader.
—Walter J. Ong, Orality and Literacy, (1982) 2002
The work was inconvenienced by the time of year, there being only about three hours of natural light per day, but the pyroclastic spectacle made the darkness photogenic.
—John McPhee, New Yorker, 22 Feb. 1988
I wouldn't want to inconvenience you.
We were inconvenienced by the bad weather.
Simon Winchester, The Man Who Loved China, 2008
Any wish or even longing I might have to see her produced no results; sometimes when she showed up it was actually inconvenient, but frustrated longing and inconvenience both ended the same way …
—Jane Smiley, Good Faith, 2003
Jem knew as well as I that it was difficult to walk fast without stumping a toe, tripping on stones, and other inconveniences, and I was barefooted.
—Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird, 1960
I hope this delay doesn't cause you any inconvenience.
Bridge repairs cannot be done without some inconvenience to the public.
Parking in the city can be a major inconvenience.
The delay was an inconvenience.
Verb
… I could count on one of my aunts to insist that she take me to some far-off corner of Nairobi to find the best bargains, no matter how long the trip took or how much it might inconvenience her.
—Barack Obama, Dreams from My Father, (1995) 2004
Medieval manuscripts are turgid with abbreviations, which favor the copyist although they inconvenience the reader.
—Walter J. Ong, Orality and Literacy, (1982) 2002
The work was inconvenienced by the time of year, there being only about three hours of natural light per day, but the pyroclastic spectacle made the darkness photogenic.
—John McPhee, New Yorker, 22 Feb. 1988
I wouldn't want to inconvenience you.
We were inconvenienced by the bad weather.
Recent Examples on the WebLauren Sheets Jarrell, Baltimore Sun, 6 Aug. 2024
The record temperatures are more than an uncomfortable inconvenience.
—Zoya Teirstein, USA TODAY, 6 Aug. 2024
Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 6 Aug. 2024
Richer found himself in the eye of attacks after the 2022 midterm general election, when printer malfunctions at dozens of voting sites caused confusion and inconvenienced some voters.
—Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, Washington Post, 31 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for inconvenience 
Noun
According to Mayor Brandon Scott, public hearings might be an inconvenience to Baltimore’s pending multibillion-dollar lawsuit against a group of corporate defendants in a prescription opioid trial scheduled for September.
—Lauren Sheets Jarrell, Baltimore Sun, 6 Aug. 2024
The record temperatures are more than an uncomfortable inconvenience.
—Zoya Teirstein, USA TODAY, 6 Aug. 2024
Verb
With rumblings of potential default search engine changes, there’s also potential for users perfectly happy with Google’s massive search bar presence to be inconvenienced.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 6 Aug. 2024
Richer found himself in the eye of attacks after the 2022 midterm general election, when printer malfunctions at dozens of voting sites caused confusion and inconvenienced some voters.
—Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, Washington Post, 31 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for inconvenience
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'inconvenience.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near inconvenience
Cite this Entry
“Inconvenience.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inconvenience. Accessed 18 Aug. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
inconvenience
1 of 2 noun
in·con·ve·nience
ˌin-kən-ˈvē-nyən(t)s
1
: something that is inconvenient
2
: the quality or state of being inconvenient
inconvenience
2 of 2 verb
inconvenienced; inconveniencing
: to cause discomfort to : put to trouble
inconvenienced by the bad weather
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