unknown
Americanadjective
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not known; not within the range of one's knowledge, experience, or understanding; strange; unfamiliar.
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not discovered, explored, identified, or ascertained.
the unknown parts of Antarctica.
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not widely known; not famous; obscure.
an unknown writer.
noun
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a thing, influence, area, factor, or person that is unknown.
the many unknowns in modern medicine; The director cast an unknown in the leading role.
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Mathematics. a symbol representing an unknown quantity: in algebra, analysis, etc., frequently represented by a letter from the last part of the alphabet, as x, y, or z.
adjective
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not known, understood, or recognized
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not established, identified, or discovered
an unknown island
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not famous; undistinguished
some unknown artist
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a person or thing whose action, effect, etc, is unknown or unpredictable
noun
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an unknown person, quantity, or thing
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maths a variable, or the quantity it represents, the value of which is to be discovered by solving an equation; a variable in a conditional equation
3y = 4x + 5 is an equation in two unknowns
Other Word Forms
- unknownness noun
Etymology
Origin of unknown
First recorded in 1250–1300, unknown is from the Middle English word unknow(e)n. See un- 1, known
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.
Like several other families we spoke to, she was discouraged from having a post-mortem, leaving the cause of Felix's death unknown.
From BBC
"It seems the authorities never knew what was happening," he said, adding that many of the male passengers are unknown because their names were withheld.
From BBC
“There are too many unknowns in the market,” said Ryan Jacobs, founder of Florida-based advisory firm Jacobs Investment Management, pointing to uncertainty around the timing of the next Fed interest-rate cut.
From MarketWatch
"We are going into the unknown," she said sternly, "And time is precious. We cannot afford to miss a chance to speed our way. Who knows Sheba best?"
From Literature
Large denied and condemned the comments, saying the account was hacked, and there had been "unknown logins... and the account was deleted".
From BBC
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.
