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• unheard-of
  unheard-of

  adjective

  that was never heard of; unknown.
• unheard of
  unheard of

  Very unusual, extraordinary, as in It's unheard of to have all one's money refunded two years after the purchase. This expression alludes to a circumstance so unusual that it has never been heard of. [Late 1500s]

unheard-of

American  

[uhn-hurd-uhv, -ov, -uhv] / ʌnˈhɜrdˌʌv, -ˌɒv, -əv /

adjective

1. that was never heard of; unknown.

   an unheard-of artist.

2. such as was never known before; unprecedented.

   an unheard-of salary.

3. shocking or outrageous.

   unheard-of conduct.

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unheard-of British  

adjective

1. previously unknown

   an unheard-of actress

2. without precedent

   an unheard-of treatment

3. highly offensive

   unheard-of behaviour

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unheard of Idioms  

1. Very unusual, extraordinary, as in It's unheard of to have all one's money refunded two years after the purchase. This expression alludes to a circumstance so unusual that it has never been heard of. [Late 1500s]

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Etymology

Origin of unheard-of

First recorded in 1585–95

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

unheard-of unheard of

Mr. Walz launched a campaign for an unheard-of third term in September, before abandoning it four months later as the state’s fraud scandals multiplied.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

On Wednesday, Five Below reported nearly 23% same-store sales growth, an unheard-of number for a retailer that is now 23 years old.

From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026

Perhaps one of Parling's greatest achievements, though, has been to bring largely unheard-of players to the fore.

From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026

"That's an unheard-of pace of innovation in developing complex structural alloys."

From Science Daily ● Mar. 10, 2026

They passed around sweets, almost unheard-of in the Protectorate.

From "The Girl Who Drank the Moon" by Kelly Barnhill

It’s unheard of, an abuse of power, and demoralizing to make senior leadership submit to testing en masse.

From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026

“Sam, the strength you had for those nine months that the hospital misdiagnosed you is unheard of and so strong-hearted of you. You definitely were a fighter,” Stewart said Thursday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026

Schroden said he had seen "reports of similar events occasionally over the past couple of decades" and that "it's rare but not unheard of, though tragic in every case."

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

An employee inking a company’s branding on their arms, legs or backs isn’t unheard of across American companies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

To win an argument with both Mama and Daisy was unheard of.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

Related Words

• exceptional
• inconceivable
• little-known
• unbelievable
• undiscovered
• unprecedented