unseen
Americanadjective
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not seen; unperceived; unobserved; invisible.
-
recognized or comprehended without prior study, as a written text or musical score.
adjective
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not observed or perceived; invisible
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(of passages of writing) not previously seen or prepared
noun
Etymology
Origin of unseen
Explanation
Unseen things are either not noticed or hidden from view, like the unseen subway conductor whose muffled voice you hear making announcements about train delays. If your goal is to be unseen as you sneak in late to your cousin's wedding, you're hoping that no one observes you. Other things are unseen simply because it's not possible to see them: "She was aware of the ghost as a chilly presence in the room, although it remained unseen." The adjective unseen is formed by adding the prefix un-, "not," to seen.
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.
They also gave tribute to co-stars David Doyle, who played the Angels’ handler John Bosley, and John Forsythe, who voiced the unseen Charlie.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026
The rodent was largely unseen until 2017, when a pregnant female was found in Merced County.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026
An unseen chorus acts like another orchestral element, echoing the singers and amplifying the music’s insidious power.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026
They found that standard methods for producing entangled photons can contain previously unseen topological structures.
From Science Daily • Mar. 21, 2026
He held the cane up like a gun, pressed an unseen button, and a feathered dart shot out of it and stuck to the wall.
From "City Spies" by James Ponti
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.
