unreason

[uhn-ree-zuh n]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR unreason ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

inability or unwillingness to think or act rationally, reasonably, or sensibly; irrationality.

lack of reason or sanity; madness; confusion; disorder; chaos: a world torn by unreason.

verb (used with object)

to upset or disrupt the reason or sanity of: The devious plot soon unreasoned the general.

Origin of unreason

First recorded in 1250–1300, unreason is from the Middle English word un-reson. See un-¹, reason

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for unreason

In The Embrace of Unreason, Frederick Brown weaves a warning for America from the story of the divided French.
‘The Embrace of Unreason’: How France Lost It All Between the Wars|Michael Korda|May 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is that phenomenon that Frederick Brown explores in his brilliant new book, The Embrace of Unreason: France, 1914-1940.
‘The Embrace of Unreason’: How France Lost It All Between the Wars|Michael Korda|May 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Like the Furies, the Cheneys stand for unreason and emotionalism.
Cheney Blood Lust|Lee Siegel|October 22, 2009|DAILY BEAST
There were not only doubt and denial, but now there were also impatience and unreason.
Soul of a Bishop|H. G. Wells

The more he believes in his own reason, the more he yearns for some method of out-shouting the unreason of his neighbours.
God and Mr. Wells|William Archer
The unreason of our painting has the same cause as the unreason of our objects of use; and the cause is in us, not in the artist.
Essays on Art|A. Clutton-Brock
He felt as if he had been assaulting a beautiful alabaster wall of unreason.
The Portion of Labor|Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
God torments himself with the devil, and the philosopher does it with unreason and the accidental.
The Ego and His Own|Max Stirner

British Dictionary definitions for unreason

unreason

noun

irrationality or madness

something that lacks or is contrary to reason

lack of order; chaos

verb

(tr) to deprive of reason

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

unreason

noun

verb (used with object)

RELATED WORDS

Origin of unreason

Examples from the Web for unreason

unreason

noun

verb