unsure

[ uhn-shoor, ‐shur ]

adjective

1. not certain or confident:

   He arrived at the party unsure of his welcome.

2. unknown or liable to change; not determined or definite:

   The monthly trend for this stock is still unsure, but the daily trend is upward.

   What happened next is unsure.

unsure

/ ʌnˈʃʊə /

adjective

1. lacking assurance or self-confidence
2. usually postpositive without sure knowledge; uncertain

   unsure of her agreement

3. precarious; insecure
4. not certain or reliable

Word History and Origins

Origin of unsure¹

First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English unseur(e) “unsafe; precarious; uncertain”; un- ¹( def ) + sure ( def )

Example Sentences

If you’re unsure about how to incorporate keywords based on regional trends, use Google Trends to discover what’s trending.

From Search Engine Watch

Worried, he rushed to his hospital, unsure whether he was really being summoned to get the vaccine or not.

From MIT Technology Review

Some people may have no issue with the magical fruits, and GI problems are very individual, but if you’re unsure about your reaction to beans, you may want to save yourself—and everyone in your group—the trouble.

From Outside Online

Like most companies, Divvy was initially unsure as to how the pandemic would impact its business.

From TechCrunch

Others said they were unsure and only 6% said they would not get vaccinated.

From Search Engine Land

Unsure whether his assailants were following him, he turned around and fired back with his AK-47.

From The Daily Beast

I had been unsure how I was going to react to his performance.

From The Daily Beast

Want to start self-tracking but unsure where to store your data, or how to make it look good (and more importantly, make sense)?

From The Daily Beast

Unsure of what to do, the operator asked a superior what the correct move would be.

From The Daily Beast

I remember trying to cast him in a movie a year before Taken, and they were unsure about him.

From The Daily Beast

She seemed unsure now, and his hands in the uncertainty of that moment were moist like melting ice.

From Project Gutenberg

The matter becomes especially difficult when we feel ourselves unsure, or when we have discovered or expect contradiction.

From Project Gutenberg

Tommy got up with the rest, still feeling sick and oddly unsure of himself.

From Project Gutenberg

Divine guidance, did not save them from puzzling perplexities and unsure decisions.

From Project Gutenberg

In his later days he grew more and more unsure of himself, as he felt compelled to work at his topmost speed.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• distrustful
• dubious
• hesitant
• indecisive
• mistrustful
• shaky
• skeptical
• suspicious
• uncertain
• unclear
• unconvinced
• undecided