unkempt
Americanadjective
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not combed.
unkempt hair.
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uncared-for or neglected; disheveled; messy.
unkempt clothes; an unkempt lawn.
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unpolished; rough; crude.
adjective
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(of the hair) uncombed; dishevelled
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ungroomed; slovenly
unkempt appearance
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archaic crude or coarse
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of unkempt
Explanation
Unkempt literally means "not combed," but use it to describe anything with a sloppy appearance. Your hair probably looks unkempt when you roll out of bed in the morning. Keep it that way if you're going for the rock star look. From the fusing of un-, "not" with kempt, "neat," comes the adjective unkempt. Kempt has fallen out of use, but unkempt persists as a popular word to describe anything unpolished, rough, or disorderly. Pig sties, the corrals where pigs live, are usually quite unkempt. That's why your mom keeps calling your messy, unkempt train wreck of a room a pig sty.
Vocabulary lists containing unkempt
The Call of the Wild
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The One and Only Ivan
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Uglies
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Lee, who grew up in L.A. and teaches English at Loyola Marymount University, says her unkempt garden reminds her of Los Angeles in some ways.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 10, 2026
Trainor said the stigma against facial hair as unkempt and dirty is fading, calling it part of a broader trend of “greater informality in dress and grooming and speech.”
From The Wall Street Journal • May 27, 2026
At the time of the police's first visit, in early November 2024, he was living in an annexe of his parents' property, and was described as looking "unkempt".
From BBC • Aug. 29, 2025
It’s not that the right of way under the power lines now is unkempt.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 10, 2025
His hair is unwashed and unkempt, his green eyes bloodshot, his mouth twitching into a frown.
From "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
