unman
Americanverb (used with object)
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unmans,
present (3rd person singular)
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unmanned,
past participle, past
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unmanning
present participle
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to deprive of courage or fortitude; break down the manly spirit of.
Constant conflict finally unmanned him.
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to deprive of virility; emasculate; castrate.
verb
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to cause to lose courage or nerve
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to make effeminate
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to remove the men from
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archaic to deprive of human qualities
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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unmansimple
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unmanssimple
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have unmannedperfect
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has unmannedperfect
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am unmanningprogressive
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are unmanningprogressive
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is unmanningprogressive
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have been unmanningperfect progressive
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has been unmanningperfect progressive
Past
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unmannedsimple
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had unmannedperfect
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was unmanningprogressive
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were unmanningprogressive
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had been unmanningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of unman
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.
See Examples For:
There’s fear, but not the kind of terror that might unman me, might tempt me to hop the fence and run for home.
From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2015
The same impulse to unman a social or cultural threat gambols across Groucho’s exchanges with Eliot.
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 25, 2014
But the very process that allows it to make these corrections—its palindromes—can also unman it.
From Slate ● Jul. 10, 2012
But the prestige of Victoria grew and grew, nor were her prerogatives trifling: she could disband the army, unman the navy, set free all prisoners, make every British citizen a peer.
From Time Magazine Archive
"Does the thought of facing the Stark boy unman you, Tyrion? Your brother Jaime would be eager to come to grips with him."
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
"Wind. Trees rustling. A wolf. Which sound is it that unmans you so, Gared?"
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
Oh, Oro! this death thou ordainest, unmans the manliest.
From Mardi: and A Voyage Thither, Vol. II by Herman Melville
But next to him—of course with a long interval—comes the fellow who is so afraid of a responsibility that the very thought of it unmans him.
From That Boy Of Norcott's by Charles James Lever
"It is the disgrace,—that 's what unmans me."
From Barrington Volume I (of II) by Charles James Lever
Nothing more unmans a man than to take away from him the spur of necessity, which urges him onward and upward to the goal of his ambition.
From How to Succeed or, Stepping-Stones to Fame and Fortune by Orison Swett Marden
Lee said Seoul aims to "rapidly transform our military into a smart, elite force by establishing integrated manned and unmanned systems based on AI, robots and drones".
From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026
Battlefield drone operators also have good reason to keep the noise down, to avoid alerting the enemy of the approach of their unmanned vehicles.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026
If the military can’t buy as many F-35s or Patriot interceptors as it hoped, it might opt to buy drones and unmanned aircraft, Callan said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
In Iran, a war that has relied largely on older and expensive systems, the U.S. also used an unmanned boat made by defense startup Saronic to rescue a stranded helicopter crew.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
We had crashed into it with our Banger unmanned spacecraft and even soft-landed a Surveyor spacecraft loaded with instruments.
From "Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut's Story" by Michael Collins
His final unmanning, complete with broken nose, is served up at Carly’s office by the now-empowered female trio.
From Time ● Apr. 24, 2014
In his new movie, Langella finds excellent employment for that unmanning stare.
From Time ● Aug. 16, 2012
As if sculpted from the earth, Tabor's voice resonates with ancient calm, both consoling and unmanning its listener.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 3, 2011
A new neighbor, Tim Valentine, confesses to another sort of problem: an initial enthusiasm followed immediately by unmanning apathy.
From Time Magazine Archive
At this moment that unmanning thunder cloud, the aegis, Athena’s shield, took form aloft in the great hall.
From "The Odyssey" by Homer
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
