unwarranted
Britishadjective
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lacking justification or authorization
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another word for unwarrantable
Explanation
When something is unwarranted it's not called-for under the given circumstances. For example, debating the merits of someone's talent is one thing, but calling them stupid is unwarranted. I thought the applause was unwarranted. After all, all the guy did was stand there and point for two hours. And when that lady started screaming? That was unwarranted, too: all I did was give her a flat. It was an accident! Think of it this way: when the police want to search your home, they have to get a "warrant" — a document that allows them to enter. To go into your home without a warrant would be unwarranted. A warrant is a kind of justification; without that justification, something could be called unwarranted.
Vocabulary lists containing unwarranted
The Devil's Arithmetic
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "U"
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Dwight D. Eisenhower, "The Military-Industrial Complex" (1961)
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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.
I leaped at the poor guy with a desperate relief deeply unwarranted for this situation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
The read-across to Siemens Energy is unwarranted as the German group is more focused on confirmed orders, they say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Complaints like these usually relate to claims of being treated unfairly or having unwarranted infringements of privacy on programmes.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
They are expected to provide clarity and tamp down unwarranted panic, not stoke conspiracy theories.
From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026
From Merle Tuve at the Carnegie Institution came a sharply worded warning to his boyhood friend “Ernie” about his tendency to jump to unwarranted conclusions before all the facts were in.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
