Standard Lemma guide

unprovoked

adj · adv · verb · 4 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.

  • /ˌʌnpɹəˈvoʊkt/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: AH2 N P R AH0 V OW1 K T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Happening without provocation.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Near-synonym: unmotivated
  • an unprovoked attack

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: unmotivated

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: unprompted, unstimulated, unjustified, unjustifiable

2

adv

Meaning 2

Without provocation or motivation.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • He attacked me, suddenly, unprovoked.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

simple past and past participle of unprovoke

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: form-of, participle, past

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective satellite

Meaning 4

occurring without motivation or provocation- F.D.Roosevelt

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • motiveless malignity
  • unprovoked and dastardly attack

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: motiveless, wanton

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English provoked English unprovoked From un- + provoked.

Across languages

Translations

15 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Belarusian: несправакаваны (njespravakavany) — without provocation
  • Chinese Mandarin: 無緣無故的 /无缘无故的 (wúyuánwúgù de) — without provocation
  • Finnish: provosoimaton — without provocation
  • German: unprovoziert — without provocation
  • Greek: απρόκλητος (apróklitos) — without provocation
  • Latin: illacessītus — without provocation
  • Polish: bezpodstawny — without provocation
  • Romanian: neprovocat — without provocation
  • Russian: неспровоци́рованный (nesprovocírovannyj) — without provocation
  • Turkish: sebepsiz — without provocation
  • Turkish: nedensiz — without provocation
  • Ukrainian: неспровоко́ваний (nesprovokóvanyj) — without provocation
  • Chinese Mandarin: 無緣無故 /无缘无故 (wúyuánwúgù) — without provocation
  • Turkish: sebepsizce — without provocation
  • Turkish: nedensizce — without provocation