unknown

[ uhn-nohn ]

adjective

1. not known; not within the range of one's knowledge, experience, or understanding; strange; unfamiliar.
2. not discovered, explored, identified, or ascertained:

   the unknown parts of Antarctica.

3. not widely known; not famous; obscure:

   an unknown writer.

noun

1. 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.

2. 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.

unknown

/ ʌnˈnəʊn /

adjective

1. not known, understood, or recognized
2. not established, identified, or discovered

   an unknown island

3. not famous; undistinguished

   some unknown artist

4. unknown quantity
   unknown quantity a person or thing whose action, effect, etc, is unknown or unpredictable

noun

1. an unknown person, quantity, or thing
2. 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

Derived Forms

• unˈknownness, noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of unknown¹

First recorded in 1250–1300, unknown is from the Middle English word unknow(e)n. See un- ¹, known

Example Sentences

Finally, we plot this percentage of clicks going to unknown search terms by day, allowing you to easily see if there are any big changes coming out of the Googleplex.

From Search Engine Land

Whether Apple’s rumored new premium fitness offering, with virtual workouts and coaching, will appear as part of a bundle is unknown, but it could link with the introduction of the new Apple Watch.

From Fortune

It leads to what Firestein calls “the portal of the unknown.”

From Science News For Students

Multiple trustworthy outlets, citing unknown people familiar with his comments, report that he’s said some disturbing things about the military and those who serve in uniform.

From Vox

That means an unknown but likely significant number of those 315,000 applicants will not naturalize soon enough to register by October and vote in November.

From FiveThirtyEight

While Faal and Njie are in U.S. custody, the whereabouts of the other survivors is unknown.

From The Daily Beast

The police suspect that the other unaccounted for 643,000 bitcoins, were removed from customer accounts via an unknown party.

From The Daily Beast

Former Gov. Jimmy Carter entered the 1976 Presidential campaign as a more or less total unknown.

From The Daily Beast

Until recently, the hacker collective known as Lizard Squad was all but unknown.

From The Daily Beast

I believe that my case is being interfered with by unknown elements inside Iran.

From The Daily Beast

A native of Haarlem on Zandam, the date of her birth being unknown.

From Project Gutenberg

Idly his pen traced upon the paper in front of him a large X, the sign of the unknown quantity.

From Project Gutenberg

So how do you suppose Yung Pak's mother used to put him to sleep in this land where cradles were unknown?

From Project Gutenberg

The French Railroads are better in this respect, and the American cannot be worse, though the fault is not unknown there.

From Project Gutenberg

He believed Ramona was dead, buried in some unknown, unconsecrated spot, never to be found; yet he would not give up the search.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• anonymous
• exotic
• foreign
• nameless
• new
• remote
• strange
• uncharted
• undiscovered
• unexplained
• unexplored
• unfamiliar
• unidentified
• unnamed
• unrecognized