These examples are sourced from a unsustainable on Ludwig.guru. Use the corpus examples provided above. Format each as a blockquote with a linked source domain:
"example sentence" — domain.com If no URL is available, use italics: > "sentence" — Source Name Choose the 5 most significant examples that best illustrate how to use the expression correctly in different contexts. If fewer corpus examples are available, supplement with realistic examples in the same format.
"The report highlights that current fishing practices represent a unsustainable approach to marine resource management." — Journal of Marine Conservation
"Rapid population growth in the region has created a unsustainable demand for water resources." — United Nations Development Programme Report
"The company's reliance on fossil fuels is ultimately a unsustainable business model." — Sustainable Business Review
"Subsidizing inefficient agricultural practices is a unsustainable policy that needs to be reformed." — Food and Agriculture Organization Policy Brief
"Ignoring the environmental consequences of industrial expansion is a unsustainable path to economic development." — Global Environmental Studies Journal
"Continuing to operate with such a significant deficit creates a unsustainable financial burden on the city." — City Budget Analysis Report
"The current rate of deforestation represents a unsustainable threat to biodiversity." — International Union for Conservation of Nature
"Maintaining such a large military budget is a unsustainable use of national resources." — Defense Policy Review
Examples sourced from https://ludwig.guru/s/a+unsustainable
Depending on the level of formality or the specific situation, you might want to vary your language. Create a markdown table with 5–8 alternatives to "a unsustainable". Each phrase in the "Phrase" column must be a clickable markdown link to its Ludwig page. IMPORTANT: the link text must be the plain English phrase with normal spaces — NEVER use + in the URL slug. Replace spaces with + ONLY inside the URL slug. The "Context" column describes the register, grammatical pattern difference, or connotation. Do NOT copy the example rows — replace them with real alternatives for "a unsustainable":
| Phrase | Context |
|---|---|
| not sustainable | More direct and often used in less formal contexts. |
| untenable | More formal, implying indefensibility or unacceptability. |
| not viable | Focuses on the feasibility and practicality of something. |
| cannot be maintained | More descriptive and emphasizes the inability to continue. |
| unsustainable in the long run | Explicitly highlights the long-term consequences. |
| not feasible | Emphasizes the impracticality of something due to constraints. |
| impossible to maintain | Stronger emphasis on the inability to continue. |
A common mistake is using the phrase in a context where an article is not required at all, for example, stating "Sustainability is unsustainable" instead of "Sustainability is an unsustainable goal given current practices." Another error is using "an" instead of "a" before "unsustainable." Although "unsustainable" begins with a vowel letter, it starts with a consonant sound (like "you"), so "a" is correct.
| Expression | Meaning | Grammatical Pattern | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| a unsustainable | Not able to be maintained at the current rate or level. | Article + Adjective + Noun (implied) | Neutral to Formal |
The components of "a unsustainable [noun]" should generally stay together. The adjective "unsustainable" directly modifies the noun, and the article "a" specifies that noun. Separating them would disrupt the intended meaning and grammatical structure.
While both phrases convey a similar meaning, "a unsustainable [noun]" is often used to describe a specific instance or example of something that is unsustainable. "Not sustainable" is a broader, more general statement. For example, "This project is a unsustainable venture" versus "This project is not sustainable."
The correct article depends on the sound of the word that follows, not just the first letter. Since "unsustainable" begins with a consonant sound (like the word 'you'), you should always use "a unsustainable", not "an unsustainable", even though the word starts with the letter 'u'. Learners should remember to focus on pronunciation, not just spelling, when choosing between 'a' and 'an'.
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