unspoken

[uhn-spoh-kuhn]

adjective

1. implied or understood without being spoken or uttered.

2. not addressed (usually followed byto ).

3. not talking; silent.

unspoken

/ ʌnˈspəʊkən /

adjective

1. understood without needing to be spoken; tacit

2. not uttered aloud

Word History and Origins

Origin of unspoken¹

First recorded in 1325–75, unspoken is from the Middle English word unspokyn. See un- ¹, spoken

Example Sentences

“Especially with new guys, you have to speak it out for a while before you get to that point of unspoken communication,” right tackle Trey Pipkins III said.

From Los Angeles Times

When Gali, toward the end, links Israel’s failures that day to a subsequent response that smacks of “revenge,” the movie feels close to addressing the unspoken.

From Los Angeles Times

Hawke doesn’t overload their delicate dances or any of his other scene partnerships with an insistence on pulling the spotlight, true to his character’s unspoken self-regard as a guide who happens to investigate his curiosities.

From Salon

It’s just something there, running in the background — an unspoken acknowledgment that being American is a pretty terrific thing to be.

From Los Angeles Times

The congresswoman’s bill made it into the headlines, and it reinforced the unspoken understanding that Glenn is not there to interrogate: He’s there to assist.

From Salon

Related Words

• implicit 
• implied 
• tacit