unparalleled
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of unparalleled
Explanation
If something's unparalleled, there's never been anything like it — such as a brilliant musical performance or a record-breaking time for an athlete. Remember parallel lines from your old geometry classes — lines running alongside each other always at the same distance that never meet and are essentially identical? Well, that's the idea unparalleled comes from — except the opposite (thus the "un"). Sporting achievements are particularly prone to being described as unparalleled, since athletes are always out to break records.
Vocabulary lists containing unparalleled
Frindle
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "U"
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Herbert Hoover on "Rugged Individualism" (1928)
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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.
Almost as obvious: The war’s end led to a rebuilding of battered nations and an era of unparalleled prosperity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
“We’re here about a botched rollout of unparalleled proportions,” Randy Mastro, a lawyer representing the homeowners, said in court Monday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
"As a performer he was unparalleled – witty, charming, unnerving, and deeply funny. We will always consider it one of our greatest treasures to have been part of Long John Silver's crew," it added.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
But when it comes to The Beatles’ unparalleled legacy, “Revolver” finds the bandmates on an unimpeded trajectory towards greatness.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
It was this kind of willful, wildly romantic attention to beauty—crumbling and fading beauty needing constant attention—that made this city so unlike any other and such an unparalleled sort of environment for a builder.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
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.
