unsolicited
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of unsolicited
Explanation
Something unsolicited was not asked for and possibly not wanted. Unsolicited calls and advice come whether we want them or not. One very common use of this word is in discussing "unsolicited advice" or feedback, which definitely has a negative spin. If someone is butting into your business, telling you what you should do, they're giving unsolicited advice. Junk mail is unsolicited. Phone calls trying to sell you something are unsolicited. Unsolicited seems negative, but it can be used positively. If you give compliments that are unsolicited, then you offer them spontaneously and honestly — that's something people like.
Vocabulary lists containing unsolicited
Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 7
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One of Us Is Lying
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Summer of the Mariposas
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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.
Avi shows up to work with unsolicited business advice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
Importantly, never click on a link sent in an unsolicited email or text message, even if it looks official, as it could be a scam.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
This means banning profiling-based recommender feeds that lead to children seeing harmful content, as well as on reward-type mechanisms, and unsolicited contact from strangers.
From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026
GameStop’s Chief Executive Ryan Cohen earlier this year made an unsolicited offer to buy eBay for about $56 billion, saying he saw a path to make the e-commerce company a much bigger competitor to Amazon.com.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
The system informed me that I’d received over two million new unsolicited messages.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
