unabridged
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
Etymology
Origin of unabridged
Explanation
When a book is unabridged it's the whole thing, with nothing cut out. If you're seeking a definition for a very unusual word, you may need to look in an unabridged dictionary. To "abridge" something is to shorten it, so an unabridged edition has not been shortened. I can see that the short version of Shakespeare's works is easier to carry around, but if you want to enjoy every line, read the unabridged version. Unabridged is almost always used to describe books, but you can use it for spoken tales as well. You might not be so excited to hear the unabridged account of your sister's day at the mall.
Vocabulary lists containing unabridged
Becoming Naomi León
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What If It's Us
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Cat's Cradle
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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.
That happens with movies too, of course, but with a film you typically get a condensed version, while with unabridged audiobooks you don’t miss a word of the original writing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025
But the big attraction was the bonus tracks, including the unabridged, 10-minute version of her break-up ballad All Too Well - described by Variety magazine as the "holy grail" of the star's back catalogue.
From BBC ● May 30, 2025
“I just don’t know when anybody would be able to completely master the unabridged dictionary,” Dasari says.
From Washington Times ● May 29, 2023
With the police investigation now complete, Downing Street released the unabridged report, which offers a revealing look at its work-hard, play-hard culture.
From New York Times ● May 25, 2022
The unabridged biography of the designer, Toru Iwatani.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
