unforeseen
Britishadjective
Explanation
Something unforeseen is something that could not be predicted and was not expected. It's a surprise. If something was foreseen, you saw it coming and it wasn't a surprise. Something unforeseen is the opposite: no one saw it coming. Accidents are usually unforeseen events: no one expects to get in a car or bike accident on a given day. Winning the lottery, since it's so unlikely, would be an unforeseen event. If something was unanticipated or out of the blue, it was unforeseen. Unforeseen events can be good or bad, but they’re all surprises.
Vocabulary lists containing unforeseen
Power Prefix: un-
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World Without Fish
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: un-
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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.
Separately, as part of the company’s new Founder Alignment agreement, the board negotiated with Zuckerberg to remain a resident of California for the next eight years, barring “material unforeseen circumstances.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 22, 2026
Microsoft’s decision is a setback for U.K.-based Nscale because it shows that clients can pull the plug on deals when projects suffer delays due to unforeseen circumstances, threatening revenue streams.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026
The administrators cited unforeseen costs around the security of closed Brewdog pubs after a number of "unauthorised occupiers" gained access.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
In addition, there are unforeseen circumstances that could prompt the use of Flex Alerts and rolling outages in limited areas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
My first impulse was to write that I could not come because of an unforeseen financial disaster.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
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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.
