What does nondescript mean?
Word: Nondescript
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Nondescript means having nothing special or interesting about it, and so hard to remember.
How do you spell nondescript?
Syllables: non - de - script
Tricky part: Students who think of discuss or disappear write nondiscript. The middle part comes from describe, so the vowel is e.
Watch out for: nondiscript, nondiscrip, nondescrip
Memory tip: If you can hardly describe it, it is nondescript: the same e follows the d in both.
Nondescript in a sentence
Example 1: From outside, the award-winning restaurant looks nondescript.
Example 2: He wore a nondescript jacket that nobody could recall later.
Example 3: The film's hero is a nondescript clerk from a small town in Bihar.
Fun Fact
Naturalists first used the word for animals and plants that science had not yet described. Only later did it come to mean dull and hard to describe.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
nondescrript
a) s
b) d
c) r
d) t
Show answer
c) r. After the c, the word needs just one r.
Mingle-Mangle
Unscramble the jumbled word in the sentence and choose the correct word:
The nocnsprtdei brown envelope on the desk held the best news of her school life.
a) manuscript
b) nondescript
c) nonchalant
d) nonsensical
Show answer
b) nondescript. Two n's and a p appear in the jumble; only one option has exactly that.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word nondescript as used in the sentence:
The famous sweet shop sits in a nondescript grey building behind the bus stand.
a) ordinary
b) bland
c) plain
d) striking
Show answer
d) striking. A striking building catches the eye; the other three would not.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one of these words is spelt correctly. Choose its meaning:
1. mediocer 2. anonimous 3. nondescript 4. inconspicious
a) so lacking in features that it leaves no impression
b) not easily noticed
c) having a name that nobody knows
d) only average, and not very good
Show answer
a) so lacking in features that it leaves no impression. Mediocre ends in re, inconspicuous has a u before the ous, and anonymous has an o after the n.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A travel writer calls a town nondescript. What does this suggest?
a) it is known for its great natural beauty
b) it has several famous old forts to see
c) it is far too crowded to enjoy a visit
d) it has little that stays in the memory
Show answer
d) it has little that stays in the memory
2. Which item best fits the word nondescript?
a) a painted lorry with flashing lights
b) a carved door with brass peacocks
c) a bright red kite with a golden tail
d) a plain grey box with no label
Show answer
d) a plain grey box with no label
