unwonted
Americanadjective
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not customary or usual; rare.
unwonted kindness.
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Archaic. unaccustomed or unused.
adjective
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out of the ordinary; unusual
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archaic (usually foll by to) unaccustomed; unused
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unwonted
Explanation
Unwonted is a pretty old-fashioned word now, meaning something unusual or out of the ordinary. Nowadays, unwonted is a pretty unwonted word itself. Unwonted was once a particularly beloved literary term, favored by authors like Henry James and Charles Dickens, whose books were filled with "unwonted circumstances," and the like. Not to be confused — as it often is — with unwanted, meaning not wanted or desired. The confusion arises not just because the words sound identical, but because their meanings overlap: it's a safe bet that anything unwonted is generally unwanted, too.
Vocabulary lists containing unwonted
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The Tempest
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"To Build a Fire," Vocabulary from the short story
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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.
These days central bankers would meet such unwonted affordability with a gust of money-printing.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 29, 2026
This is because of the unwonted affection that the former president displays to his one-time arch-rival.
From BBC • Dec. 10, 2025
Some sequences verge on a romp, and the result, though far from Lanthimos’s usual territory, could well bring him an unwonted commercial success.
From The New Yorker • Nov. 16, 2018
Backstage, Edinburgh yielded to the south with a sea of Italians washing around the dressing rooms and up to Noseda’s closed door, where the maestro, in unwonted seclusion, was doing his new PT exercises.
From Washington Post • Sep. 21, 2017
Her occupation, suspended by Mr. Rochester’s announcement, seemed now forgotten: her eyes, fixed on the blank wall opposite, expressed the surprise of a quiet mind stirred by unwonted tidings.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
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.
