unfledged
Americanadjective
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(of a young bird) not having developed adult feathers
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immature and undeveloped
Etymology
Origin of unfledged
Explanation
Something that is unfledged is young and inexperienced, such as an unfledged short story writer who has great style but whose stories have plots that are impossible to follow. The word unfledged can be used literally to describe a baby bird that doesn’t yet have feathers and can’t fly or leave the nest. It can also describe a person who is inexperienced or not yet completely developed. An actor just learning his craft could be called unfledged. It can also be used to describe ideas that are still developing, such as an unfledged plan — there are goals but all the steps for reaching them aren't in place.
Vocabulary lists containing unfledged
100 SAT Words Beginning with "U"
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Made You Look: Synonyms for "Immature"
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"Wuthering Heights" by Emily Bronte, Chapters 1–5
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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.
But for the unfledged, it’s not that easy or welcoming.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 28, 2023
He is forever unfledged, climbing the shaky tree he’s not supposed to touch.
From Slate • Dec. 5, 2017
What do you do when your wacky stage play is bordering on unfledged critical catastrophe?
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 7, 2017
Romans were busy converting their palazzi into flats for tourists; there were no commissions for an unfledged architetto veneziano.
From Time Magazine Archive
“Boy and girl. Aren’t they beauties?” said the proud papa, beaming upon the little red squirmers as if they were unfledged angels.
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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.
