unconscious

[ uhn-kon-shuhs ]
See synonyms for unconscious on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. not conscious; without awareness, sensation, or cognition.

  2. temporarily devoid of consciousness.

  1. not perceived at the level of awareness; occurring below the level of conscious thought: an unconscious impulse.

  2. not consciously realized, planned, or done; without conscious volition or intent: an unconscious social slight.

  3. not endowed with mental faculties: the unconscious stones.

noun
  1. the unconscious, Psychoanalysis. the part of the mind containing psychic material that is only rarely accessible to awareness but that has a pronounced influence on behavior.

Origin of unconscious

1
First recorded in 1705–15; 1915–20 for def. 6; un-1 + conscious

Other words from unconscious

  • un·con·scious·ly, adverb
  • un·con·scious·ness, noun
  • qua·si-un·con·scious, adjective
  • self-un·con·scious, adjective

Words Nearby unconscious

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use unconscious in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for unconscious

unconscious

/ (ʌnˈkɒnʃəs) /


adjective
  1. lacking normal sensory awareness of the environment; insensible

  2. not aware of one's actions, behaviour, etc: unconscious of his bad manners

  1. characterized by lack of awareness or intention: an unconscious blunder

  2. coming from or produced by the unconscious: unconscious resentment

noun
  1. psychoanal the part of the mind containing instincts, impulses, images, and ideas that are not available for direct examination: See also collective unconscious Compare subconscious, preconscious

Derived forms of unconscious

  • unconsciously, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for unconscious

unconscious

The part of the psyche lying far below consciousness and not easily raised into consciousness. In Freudian psychology, the unconscious cannot be directly observed with the conscious mind, but it has its own processes and deeply affects conscious thought.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.