dysfunctional
adjective
Paul C. LightTom EwingWarren E. BuffettChris Mooney
Did you know?
Dysfunctional and dysfunction have been used for almost a hundred years, often in medical writing ("brain dysfunction", "a dysfunctional liver") but also by social scientists ("a dysfunctional city council", "diplomatic dysfunction"). But they only really entered the general vocabulary in the 1980s, when therapists and talk-show hosts began talking about dysfunctional families. The signs of family dysfunction turned out to be numerous, and it soon began to seem as if pretty much all our families could be called dysfunctional.
Examples of dysfunctional in a Sentence
Genevieve Redsten, Journal Sentinel, 13 May 2024
Last year, the governor focused on rebuilding the state’s dysfunctional mental health system and pushing a bond measure, which voters narrowly approved in March, that will fund construction of facilities with 10,000 new treatment beds.
—David Lauter, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for dysfunctional 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dysfunctional.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Cite this Entry
“Dysfunctional.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dysfunctional. Accessed 29 May. 2024.
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