unspoken

[uhn-spoh-kuhn]

adjective

1. implied or understood without being spoken or uttered.

2. not addressed (usually followed byto ).

3. not talking; silent.

unspoken

/ ʌnˈspəʊkən /

adjective

1. understood without needing to be spoken; tacit

2. not uttered aloud

Word History and Origins

Origin of unspoken¹

First recorded in 1325–75, unspoken is from the Middle English word unspokyn. See un- ¹, spoken

Example Sentences

Instead, he is wielding the unspoken threat of dissolving parliament and calling snap parliamentary elections—yet again—to coerce lawmakers that he believes are largely reluctant to face voters.

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Macron had been wielding the unspoken threat of dissolving the National Assembly and holding parliamentary elections after his latest prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, abruptly resigned Monday amid bickering over his cabinet choices.

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“Especially with new guys, you have to speak it out for a while before you get to that point of unspoken communication,” right tackle Trey Pipkins III said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

When Gali, toward the end, links Israel’s failures that day to a subsequent response that smacks of “revenge,” the movie feels close to addressing the unspoken.

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Hawke doesn’t overload their delicate dances or any of his other scene partnerships with an insistence on pulling the spotlight, true to his character’s unspoken self-regard as a guide who happens to investigate his curiosities.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• implicit 
• implied 
• tacit