unreconstructed
Americanadjective
-
stubbornly maintaining earlier positions, beliefs, etc.; not adjusted to new or current situations.
an unreconstructed conservative.
-
U.S. History. (of Southern states) not accepting the conditions for reinstatement in the Union after the Civil War.
adjective
Etymology
Origin of unreconstructed
First recorded in 1865–70, un- 1 + reconstruct ( def. ) + -ed 2 ( def. )
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.
A casual listener might take Mr. Youngkin for an unreconstructed Reaganite, but he sometimes speaks effusively about the affirmative powers of government.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
Flannery O’Connor’s thrillingly hard-edged tales about the unreconstructed South and its redemption-deficient malcontents will never lose their power to scratch us awake with their violence, humor and ugly truth.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 3, 2024
People interviewed for this article almost unanimously described the couple, who do not have children, as unreconstructed workaholics.
From New York Times ● Dec. 21, 2020
As an unreconstructed liberal, I felt like Simon Wiesenthal discovering he had inadvertently partnered with Mengele.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 2, 2020
“He went to his death unreconstructed and unloved,” wrote Peter Chew in American Heritage magazine, “having left his mark literally and figuratively on many a stablehand.”
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
