unconfirmed
Britishadjective
Explanation
Use the adjective unconfirmed to describe something that may or may not be true. If you've heard that there might be a pizza party at school tomorrow, but it hasn't been officially announced, it's just an unconfirmed rumor. You'll probably come across this word if you spend much a lot of time reading or listening to the news. Unconfirmed reports of a suspect running west down Main Street mean that there's been chatter about seeing this person, but no one can or establish the truth of the sighting. Unconfirmed things haven't been photographed or filmed, and they don't have an authority declaring them to be fact.
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.
Reports - unconfirmed by either country - had suggested the two nations were set to follow Greece's example.
From BBC • May 10, 2026
Multiple media outlets had previously speculated that the plane crash was intentionally caused by someone in the cockpit – but this remains unconfirmed.
From BBC • May 5, 2026
The unconfirmed takeover price of $250 a share implies a 14% premium compared to the $218.71 closing price on Wednesday, and a 46% premium to the April 1 closing price of $171.56.
From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026
Another 486 people were unconfirmed, but she expected most of them “just need to update their information.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
Rumours that a colony of Acromantula has been established in Scotland are unconfirmed.
From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling
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.
