untouched
Americanadjective
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not touched or handled, as material.
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not explored or visited.
untouched lands.
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not eaten or drunk.
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remaining in a pristine state; unchanged.
an untouched innocent; an untouched world.
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not injured or hurt; undamaged.
untouched by the exploding bombs.
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not affected or altered.
She was untouched by the life around her.
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emotionally unmoved; indifferent.
She was left untouched by the music.
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not mentioned or described, as in conversation or a book.
an untouched subject.
adjective
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not used, handled, touched, etc
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not injured or harmed
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(postpositive) emotionally unmoved
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not changed, modified, or affected
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(of food or drink) left without being consumed
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not mentioned or referred to
he left the subject untouched
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of untouched
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at un- 1, touch, -ed 2
Explanation
Something untouched has literally not been touched (like the untouched spinach on your plate), or has not been emotionally moved (like the hardened criminal who remains untouched throughout his victim's testimony). If you're not moved to some emotion, you're untouched, and if your dog doesn't eat his dinner, you'll see an untouched bowl of kibble still sitting there in the morning. You might find it hard to remain untouched by the fresh, white, untouched snow. This adjective comes from touched, which can mean "emotionally moved" or "physically affected." Add the "not" prefix un-, and you get untouched.
Vocabulary lists containing untouched
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.
When Whitaker Pace’s son asked her to buy a now hard-to-find hacky sack, she dug out her own crochet bean bag, untouched for decades.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 20, 2026
A framed screen displaying the original 2001 work from director Chris Columbus is untouched, but surrounding it are newly added digital animations designed to envelop guests.
From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026
These safeguards, he wrote, were untouched by the decision, and would continue to protect racial minorities against attacks on their political representation.
From Slate • May 12, 2026
The four hyperscalers will need to deliver AI-driven revenue beats, leave their capex budgets untouched and show cost efficiencies through head-count reductions or pricing power.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 26, 2026
As was customary in their nineteen years of marriage, he left the grits on his plate untouched, an unexpressed but articulate declaration, rooted in geography, that the society he married into had not assimilated him.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
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.
