Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

unhoped-for

American  
[uhn-hohpt-fawr] / ʌnˈhoʊptˌfɔr /

adjective

  1. unexpected; unanticipated.

    an unhoped-for piece of good luck.


unhoped-for British  
/ ˌʌnˈhəʊptfɔː /

adjective

  1. (esp of something pleasant) not anticipated; unexpected

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of unhoped-for

1590–1600; from the phrase hope for; see un- 1, -ed 2

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.

This is a sensational event, as well as an unhoped-for honor for our little city .

From Time Magazine Archive

Catherine takes Toni's love as one of her rights, and he diffidently accepts her favors as an unhoped-for privilege.

From Time Magazine Archive

It seemed as if an invisible bond had burst, and that I had struggled out into unhoped-for liberty.

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

I saw even that to be thus frankly addressed on a subject he had deemed unapproachable—to hear it thus freely handled—was beginning to be felt by him as a new pleasure—an unhoped-for relief.

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

Other men, too, began to look him up, and, best of all, an editor one day sent him an unhoped-for commission—half-a-dozen drawings for a magazine story by a widely-read author.

From An Engagement of Convenience A Novel by Zangwill, Louis

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Look it up. Learn it forever.

Remember "unhoped-for" for good with VocabTrainer. Expand your vocabulary effortlessly with personalized learning tools that adapt to your goals.

Take me to Vocabulary.com