Standard Lemma guide

unergative

adj · noun · 2 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

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  • UK: /ʌnˈɜːɡətɪv/
  • US: /ʌnˈɝɡətɪv/

1

adj

Meaning 1

Intransitive and having an agent as its subject.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

An unergative verb.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From un- + ergative, from the fact that in an ergative-absolutive language, the only case which uniquely identifies a volitional argument is the ergative case, which marks the agent of a transitive verb.

Across languages

Translations

3 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Hungarian: unergatív — intransitive and having an agent as its subject
  • Polish: nieergatywny — intransitive and having an agent as its subject
  • Spanish: inergativo — intransitive and having an agent as its subject