Standard Lemma guide

un-

prefix · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation: /ʌn/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australian: /an/

1

prefix

Meaning 1

not

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • un- + educated → uneducated (“not educated”)

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

prefix

Meaning 2

lack of

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • un- + conformity → unconformity (“lack of conformity”)

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

prefix

Meaning 3

contrary to traditional norms; unconventional

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • un- + conference → unconference

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

prefix

Meaning 4

the inverse of a specified action

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • un- + dress → undress (“to take one's clothes off”)
  • un- + lock → unlock (“to undo the locking of”)

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

prefix

Meaning 5

deprive of, release from, free from, remove from, extract from

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • un- + cage → uncage (“to release from a cage”)
  • un- + tangle → untangle (“to remove the tangling of”)

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

prefix

Meaning 6

intensifying a verb that already suggests opposition or removal

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme, rare

Examples

  • un- + loosen → unloosen
  • un- + decipher → undecipher
  • un- + thaw → unthaw

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

prefix

Meaning 7

Used for the digit one to form systematic element names of elements whose existence has been predicted, and which have not yet been given a trivial name.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Topics: chemistry, natural-sciences, physical-sciences

Examples

  • un- (“1”) + bi- (“2”) + un- (“1”) + -ium (element suffix) → unbiunium (“element 121”)

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

prefix

Meaning 8

Used to form large numbers as the first in the sequence.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • un- + decillion (“1033”) → undecillion (“1036”)
  • un- + vigintillion (“1063”) → unvigintillion (“1066”)

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Middle English un-, from Old English un-, from Proto-West Germanic *un-, from Proto-Germanic *un-, from Proto-Indo-European *n̥-. Cognate with Scots un-, on- (“un-”), North Frisian ün-, Saterland Frisian uun-, West Frisian ûn-, on-, Dutch on-, Low German un-, on-, German un-, Danish u-, Swedish o-, Norwegian u-, Icelandic ó-. More distant cognate with Latin in-, Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (whence English a-, modern Greek α- (a-)) and Sanskrit अ- (a-). Doublet of in- and a-.

From Middle English on-, from Old English on-, ond-, and- (“against, facing, toward; in return, back, without”), from Proto-West Germanic *anda-, from Proto-Germanic *anda-, *andi- (“against”), from Proto-Indo-European *h2énti (“across, forth, forward, ahead”), from *h2énts (“end, limit, forehead”). In some cases the meaning is influenced by un- (“not”, etymology 1).

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ís? Proto-Indo-European *h1óynos Proto-Italic *oinos Old Latin oinos Latin ūnusbor. English un- Borrowed from Latin ūnus.

Across languages

Translations

168 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: on- — denoting absence
  • Albanian: nuk ka — denoting absence
  • Armenian: ան- (an-) — denoting absence
  • Armenian: չ- (čʻ-) — denoting absence
  • Armenian: դժ- (dž-) — denoting absence
  • Armenian: տ- (t-) — denoting absence
  • Belarusian: мала- (mala-) — denoting absence
  • Bulgarian: не- (ne-) — denoting absence
  • Catalan: in- — denoting absence
  • Chinese Mandarin: 不- (bù-) — denoting absence
  • Dutch: on- — denoting absence
  • Esperanto: mal- — denoting absence
  • Esperanto: ne- — denoting absence
  • Esperanto: sen- — denoting absence
  • Faroese: ó- — denoting absence
  • Finnish: -ton — denoting absence
  • French: in- — denoting absence
  • French: mal — denoting absence
  • French: non- — denoting absence
  • Galician: in- — denoting absence
  • Georgian: არა- (ara-) — denoting absence
  • Georgian: უ- -ო (u- -o) — denoting absence
  • Georgian: უ- (u-) — denoting absence
  • German: un- — denoting absence
  • Greek: α- (a-) — denoting absence
  • Ancient Greek: ἀ- (a-) — denoting absence
  • Icelandic: ó- — denoting absence
  • Indonesian: tan- — denoting absence
  • Italian: in- — denoting absence
  • Kapampangan: e- — denoting absence
  • Latin: in- — denoting absence
  • Luxembourgish: on- — denoting absence
  • Norwegian: u- — denoting absence
  • Old Norse: ú- — denoting absence
  • Old Norse: ó- — denoting absence
  • Persian: بیـ — denoting absence
  • Persian: بی — denoting absence
  • Pohnpeian: sou- — denoting absence
  • Polish: nie- — denoting absence
  • Portuguese: in- — denoting absence
  • Romanian: ne- — denoting absence
  • Romanian: i- — denoting absence
  • Russian: не- (ne-) — denoting absence
  • Scottish Gaelic: ao- — denoting absence
  • Scottish Gaelic: mì- — denoting absence
  • Scottish Gaelic: neo- — denoting absence
  • Scottish Gaelic: eu- — denoting absence
  • Scottish Gaelic: do- — denoting absence
  • Scottish Gaelic: an- — denoting absence
  • Lower Sorbian: nje- — denoting absence
  • Spanish: in- — denoting absence
  • Spanish: poco — denoting absence
  • Spanish: nada — denoting absence
  • Swedish: o- — denoting absence
  • Swedish: van- — denoting absence
  • Tagalog: di- — denoting absence
  • Armenian: ան- (an-) — denoting a lack of
  • Armenian: չ- (čʻ-) — denoting a lack of
  • Armenian: դժ- (dž-) — denoting a lack of
  • Armenian: տ- (t-) — denoting a lack of
  • Bulgarian: не- (ne-) — denoting a lack of
  • Catalan: in- — denoting a lack of
  • Esperanto: mal- — denoting a lack of
  • Esperanto: ne- — denoting a lack of
  • Esperanto: sen- — denoting a lack of
  • Faroese: ó- — denoting a lack of
  • Finnish: -ton — denoting a lack of
  • Finnish: epä- — denoting a lack of
  • French: in- — denoting a lack of
  • French: non- — denoting a lack of
  • French: sans — denoting a lack of
  • Galician: in- — denoting a lack of
  • Georgian: უ- (u-) — denoting a lack of
  • German: un- — denoting a lack of
  • Greek: α- (a-) — denoting a lack of
  • Hungarian: -talan — denoting a lack of
  • Hungarian: -telen — denoting a lack of
  • Hungarian: -atlan — denoting a lack of
  • Hungarian: -etlen — denoting a lack of
  • Hungarian: -tlan — denoting a lack of
  • Hungarian: -tlen — denoting a lack of
  • Icelandic: ó- — denoting a lack of
  • Kapampangan: emika- — denoting a lack of
  • Kapampangan: emiki- — denoting a lack of
  • Kapampangan: emi- — denoting a lack of
  • Korean: 무- (mu-) — denoting a lack of
  • Polish: bez- — denoting a lack of
  • Polish: nie- — denoting a lack of
  • Portuguese: in- — denoting a lack of
  • Portuguese: des- — denoting a lack of
  • Russian: без- (bez-) — denoting a lack of
  • Russian: бес- (bes-) — denoting a lack of
  • Russian: не- (ne-) — denoting a lack of
  • Scottish Gaelic: ao- — denoting a lack of
  • Scottish Gaelic: mì- — denoting a lack of
  • Scottish Gaelic: neo- — denoting a lack of
  • Scottish Gaelic: eu- — denoting a lack of
  • Scottish Gaelic: do- — denoting a lack of
  • Lower Sorbian: nje- — denoting a lack of
  • Spanish: in- — denoting a lack of
  • Swedish: o- — denoting a lack of
  • Tagalog: di- — denoting a lack of
  • Afrikaans: on- — violative of; contrary to
  • Albanian: pa- — violative of; contrary to
  • Armenian: հակա- (haka-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Azerbaijani: na- — violative of; contrary to
  • Basque: -a — violative of; contrary to
  • Belarusian: не- (nje-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Bengali: অ- (o-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Bulgarian: не- (ne-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Catalan: in- — violative of; contrary to
  • Chinese Mandarin: 不 (bù) — violative of; contrary to
  • Chinese Mandarin: 無 /无 (wú) — violative of; contrary to
  • Czech: ne- — violative of; contrary to
  • Danish: u- — violative of; contrary to
  • Dutch: on- — violative of; contrary to
  • Esperanto: mal- — violative of; contrary to
  • Finnish: epä- — violative of; contrary to
  • French: anti- — violative of; contrary to
  • French: in- — violative of; contrary to
  • French: non- — violative of; contrary to
  • Galician: anti- — violative of; contrary to
  • German: un- — violative of; contrary to
  • Greek: αντι- (anti-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Icelandic: ó- — violative of; contrary to
  • Japanese: 不- (fu) — violative of; contrary to
  • Japanese: 反- (han) — violative of; contrary to
  • Japanese: 無- (mu) — violative of; contrary to
  • Javanese: ora — violative of; contrary to
  • Kapampangan: e- — violative of; contrary to
  • Korean: 불- (bul-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Korean: 반- (ban-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Lao: ບໍ່- (bǭ) — violative of; contrary to
  • Macedonian: не- (ne-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Persian: ناـ — violative of; contrary to
  • Polish: nie- — violative of; contrary to
  • Portuguese: in- — violative of; contrary to
  • Portuguese: anti- — violative of; contrary to
  • Portuguese: não- — violative of; contrary to
  • Russian: не- (ne-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Scottish Gaelic: an- — violative of; contrary to
  • Scottish Gaelic: mì- — violative of; contrary to
  • Serbo-Croatian: не- — violative of; contrary to
  • Serbo-Croatian: ne- — violative of; contrary to
  • Slovak: ne- — violative of; contrary to
  • Slovene: ne- — violative of; contrary to
  • Lower Sorbian: nje- — violative of; contrary to
  • Spanish: in- — violative of; contrary to
  • Swedish: o- — violative of; contrary to
  • Swedish: anti- — violative of; contrary to
  • Ukrainian: не- (ne-) — violative of; contrary to
  • Armenian: ապ- (ap-) — reversal or cancellation
  • Dutch: ont- — reversal or cancellation
  • Esperanto: mal- — reversal or cancellation
  • French: dé- — reversal or cancellation
  • French: dés- — reversal or cancellation
  • Galician: des- — reversal or cancellation
  • German: ent- — reversal or cancellation
  • Greek: απο- (apo-) — reversal or cancellation
  • Icelandic: af- — reversal or cancellation
  • Italian: s- — reversal or cancellation
  • Norwegian Bokmål: av- — reversal or cancellation
  • Norwegian Bokmål: unn- — reversal or cancellation
  • Norwegian Bokmål: opp — reversal or cancellation
  • Polish: od- — reversal or cancellation
  • Portuguese: des- — reversal or cancellation
  • Spanish: des- — reversal or cancellation
  • Swedish: av- — reversal or cancellation