unreconstructed
Americanadjective
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stubbornly maintaining earlier positions, beliefs, etc.; not adjusted to new or current situations.
an unreconstructed conservative.
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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.
Don Fabrizio declines the offer and launches into a memorable defense of unreconstructed Sicilian society.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025
It was a self-meming performance of the face of every woman who has ever been forced to listen to a bunch of unreconstructed insanity spewing from someone who has unidirectionally failed upward.
From Slate • Sep. 11, 2024
The most direct criticism of Peltz came from Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a management professor at Yale who is an unreconstructed fan of Iger’s.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2024
Most conferences have an opening round through which all can sleep save for the aforementioned next of kin and the unreconstructed geeks.
From Washington Post • Mar. 9, 2023
I didn’t think it at all strange that a thirteen-year-old boy in the unreconstructed Southern town of Stamps spoke with an En- glishy accent.
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
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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.