inconvenience

inconvenience — noun

IPA/ˌɪnkənˈviːniəns/
KK[ˌɪnkənvˈinjəns]IPA/ˌɪnkənˈviːniəns/
  • inconveniencesingular
  • inconveniencesplural

1. a small problem or extra effort that makes a task, plan, or daily routine harder

1.nounB2
Definition

a small problem or extra effort that makes a task, plan, or daily routine harder or less comfortable than it should be; this word can also refer to anyone or anything that creates such difficulty

Example

The sudden rain caused a great inconvenience for Ziad, who had no umbrella with him.

collocation: cause inconvenience

Yael considered the long wait at the clinic a minor inconvenience.

collocation: (a) minor inconvenience

Common collocations
  • cause inconvenience
  • minor inconvenience
  • great inconvenience
  • inconvenience to
  • inconvenience caused by
  • apologize for the inconvenience
  • save someone the inconvenience
Synonyms
  • trouble

    broader term; can be more serious than inconvenience

  • bother

    suggests a mild personal annoyance; less formal

  • hassle

    informal; implies a tiresome, annoying process

  • disruption

    stronger; suggests normal activity is broken or stopped

Antonyms
  • convenience

    the opposite quality of being easy or suitable

  • comfort

    a state of ease and freedom from difficulty

Grammar Patterns

inconvenience + to + [person]

cause + inconvenience

a(n) + inconvenience

Usage Note

Often appears in polite customer-service expressions such as 'We apologize for any inconvenience.' Can refer to both the difficult situation itself and the person or object that creates it.

Common Mistakes

The traffic was a big inconvenient.
The traffic was a big inconvenience.
'inconvenient' is an adjective; use the noun form 'inconvenience' after 'a.'
Sorry for the inconvenient.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
The noun 'inconvenience' is needed, not the adjective 'inconvenient.'

inconvenience — verb

IPA/ˌɪn.kənˈviː.ni.əns/
KK[ˌɪnkənvˈinjəns]IPA/ˌɪn.kənˈviːn.jəns/

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Trouble is the broadest of these words, covering any problem from minor to extremely serious. Bother suggests a mild personal annoyance that affects your comfort or peace of mind, and is often used in polite apologies. Hassle is informal and implies a tiresome, frustrating process involving time or effort — like dealing with paperwork or bureaucracy. Disruption is stronger and more specific: it means something breaks the normal flow of events, forcing people to change their plans. For example, a delayed train is an inconvenience or a disruption; having to re-type a long document is a hassle; a neighbour's loud music at midnight is a bother. Choose inconvenience when the problem is relatively small and manageable, without the emotional tone of bother or the informal feeling of hassle.

trouble ↗bother ↗hassle ↗disruption ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • cause inconvenience
  • apologize for the inconvenience
  • save someone the inconvenience
  • put someone to inconvenience

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Inconvenience comes from Latin 'in-' (meaning 'not') plus 'convenire' (meaning 'to come together, be fitting, be suitable'). So the word's literal sense is 'not fitting together well' or 'not suitable.' It entered English through Old French 'inconvenience' in the 1400s, originally meaning 'inconsistency or harm.' By the 1600s it had settled into its modern meaning of something that causes difficulty or discomfort.