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unwitting

un·wit·ting
U u

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • UK Pronunciation
    • UK IPA
    • [uhn-wit-ing]
    • /ʌnˈwɪt ɪŋ/
    • /ʌnˈwɪt.ɪŋ/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [uhn-wit-ing]
    • /ʌnˈwɪt ɪŋ/

Definitions of unwitting word

  • adjective unwitting inadvertent; unintentional; accidental: His insult, though unwitting, pained her. 1
  • adjective unwitting not knowing; unaware; ignorant; oblivious; unconscious: an unwitting person. 1
  • verb with object unwitting Obsolete. to render devoid of wit; derange. 1
  • adjective unwitting person: unaware 1
  • adjective unwitting effect: not intentional 1
  • adjective unwitting If you describe a person or their actions as unwitting, you mean that the person does something or is involved in something without realizing it. 0

Information block about the term

Origin of unwitting

First appearance:

before 900
One of the 4% oldest English words
before 900; Middle English; Old English unwittende; see un-1, wit2, -ing2

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Unwitting

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation

unwitting popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 74% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.
This word is included in each student's vocabulary. Most likely there is at least one movie with this word in the title.

unwitting usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for unwitting

adj unwitting

  • airheaded — Slang. a scatterbrained, stupid, or simple-minded person; dolt.
  • amnesic — a person affected by amnesia.
  • apprenticed — a person who works for another in order to learn a trade: an apprentice to a plumber.
  • birdbrained — a stupid, foolish, or scatterbrained person.
  • cretinous — If you describe someone as cretinous, you think they are very stupid.

adjective unwitting

  • inconversant — Not conversant or acquainted (with something); unfamiliar.
  • irreflective — Without mental reflection.
  • nescient — lack of knowledge; ignorance.
  • nirvanic — (often initial capital letter). Pali nibbana. Buddhism. freedom from the endless cycle of personal reincarnations, with their consequent suffering, as a result of the extinction of individual passion, hatred, and delusion: attained by the Arhat as his goal but postponed by the Bodhisattva.
  • oblivious — unmindful; unconscious; unaware (usually followed by of or to): She was oblivious of his admiration.

Antonyms for unwitting

adj unwitting

  • aforethought — premeditated (esp in the phrase malice aforethought)
  • cognizant — If someone is cognizant of something, they are aware of it or understand it.
  • cut and dried — If you say that a situation or solution is cut and dried, you mean that it is clear and definite.
  • down with — from higher to lower; in descending direction or order; toward, into, or in a lower position: to come down the ladder.

adjective unwitting

  • coldblooded — having a body temperature that fluctuates, approximating that of the surrounding air, land, or water
  • deliberate — If you do something that is deliberate, you planned or decided to do it beforehand, and so it happens on purpose rather than by chance.
  • designful — full of design or intention
  • willful — deliberate, voluntary, or intentional: The coroner ruled the death willful murder.
  • witting — knowing; aware; conscious.

See also

Matching words

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