un
pronoun
one.
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un
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UN
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un-
un-a prefix meaning “not,” freely used as an English formative, giving negative or opposite force in adjectives and their derivative adverbs and nouns (unfair; unfairly; unfairness; unfelt; unseen; unfitting; unformed; unheard-of; un-get-at-able ), and less freely used in certain other nouns (unrest; unemployment ).
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'un
un
1 American
[uhn]
/ ən /
Or
'un
pronoun
Dialect.
UN
2
American
Or
U.N.
abbreviation
un-
3
American
un-
4
American
un-
1
British
prefix
-
denoting reversal of an action or state
uncover
untangle
-
denoting removal from, release, or deprivation
unharness
unman
unthrone
-
(intensifier)
unloose
UN
2
British
abbreviation
'un
3
British
/ ən /
pronoun
un-
4
British
prefix
Usage
This spelling is intended to reflect a dialectal or informal pronunciation
Synonym Usage
See in- 3.
Etymology
Origin of un-3
Middle English un-, on-, Old English; cognate with Dutch on-, Gothic, German un-, Old Norse ū-, ō-; akin to Latin in-, Greek an-, a-. See a- 6, an- 1, in- 3
Origin of un-4
Middle English, Old English un-, on-; cognate with Gothic and-, Dutch ont-, German ent-; akin to Latin ante, Greek antí; cf. ante-, anti-
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:
“Soy un prisionero de guerra,” Maduro replied—which translates to “I’m a prisoner of war”—as court officers escorted the man out of the room.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 5, 2026
The service ended with the song, I bob un sydd Ffyddlon, before his committal at Thornhill Crematorium.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2025
“Then en un abrir y cerrar de ojos — in a quick second — I’m here.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2024
That’s enough for a good morning or buenos días, a have a good day or que tenga un buen día, or even just a wave and a smile.
From Slate ● Jan. 3, 2024
“Hola, Ray. Tengo que pedirte un favor. Lou Ann’s got a friend’s kid staying with her?”
From "The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman" by Gennifer Choldenko
In 2025, more than 6,500 Rohingya attempted to leave the camps by sea, and one in seven of them were reported dead or missing, according to the UN.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
The UN General Assembly, a major gathering of world leaders, takes place in September at UN headquarters in New York.
From Barron's ● Jul. 18, 2026
The UK's representative at the UN said it strongly condemned the "reckless Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, which threaten regional security".
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Updated numbers issued by the UN health agency showed there have been 1,759 confirmed cases in DR Congo since the outbreak was declared in mid-May, including 600 confirmed deaths.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
Maybe there was a UN mandate that calling an animal endangered worked like clicking ruby slippers, and meant they’d have to drop everything and whisk us to safety.
From "Endangered" by Eliot Schrefer
What fascinating characters “The English” has at the margins quickly cycle in and out of the miniseries — bad men and women whose motivations and backgrounds remain un- or underexplored.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2022
Efforts to reach the un- and under-vaccinated must continue.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 24, 2022
This sense of being un- or under-written raises the spectre of another English author, Rachel Cusk, whose “Outline” trilogy dispenses with many of the classic techniques—plot, dialogue—that give fiction shape.
From The New Yorker ● Sep. 24, 2018
The elevated price reflects a confluence of both market and organic factors: the un- predictability of supply, the uncontrollable elements that create quality barnacles, the massive seasonal swings in demand.
From Slate ● Nov. 14, 2016
Laila sat on it and watched the un- moving blanketed mound that was her mother.
From "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
“I can tell a wrong ‘un a mile away.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2022
While the current Covid pandemic is not "the big 'un" in terms of disasters, it has highlighted weaknesses in how we live, he says.
From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2020
In French, it’s called ‘un sot-l’y-laisse’—i.e., only an idiot leaves it behind.”
From Fox News ● Jul. 24, 2020
Beautiful and pithy Watto poem from Andrew Millington: “Though not the greatest Shane, He was a good ’un, all the same.”
From The Guardian ● Mar. 25, 2016
“No, sir. But ye needn’t have no difficulty about that. It’s a ’igh ’un with a stone front with a bow on it, an’ ’igh steps up to the door.
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
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.
