unfulfilled
Americanadjective
-
not carried out or done.
many unfulfilled requests.
-
not yet achieved.
his unfulfilled dreams.
-
not happy or satisfied, from not having achieved one’s desires or full potential.
I was feeling unfulfilled in my job.
adjective
-
not completed or achieved
unfulfilled ambitions
-
not having achieved one's potential or desires
Other Word Forms
- unfulfilling adjective
Etymology
Origin of unfulfilled
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.
The efforts echo how Milton built investor heat for Nikola—which eventually collapsed amid unfulfilled promises of a technological revolution, allegations of fraud and litigation.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026
“We are working our backsides off, we feel unfulfilled, and we think, ‘For what?’”
From MarketWatch • Jan. 10, 2026
Amid the upheaval, Nehru's words stood out - a reminder of India's unfulfilled promise, and of a leader whose command of language many believe matched the enormity of the moment.
From BBC • Nov. 5, 2025
To this end, no one has possessed as much unfulfilled promise in carrying the Black celebrity activism torch as Kendrick Lamar.
From Salon • Oct. 18, 2025
Unconsciously he rubbed his own abdomen, recalling the pain of its unfulfilled needs.
From "The Giver" by Lois Lowry
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.
