Standard Lemma guide

unwisely

adv · 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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  • CMU ARPABET: AH0 N W AY1 Z L IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adv

Meaning 1

In an unwise manner; foolishly.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adverb

Meaning 2

without good sense or judgment

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • He acted foolishly when he agreed to come

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: foolishly

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Middle English vnwysely, vnwisely, vnwyseliche, from Old English unwīslīċe (“unwisely, foolish”), equivalent to un- + wisely.

Across languages

Translations

7 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: неразумно (nerazumno) — in an unwise manner
  • Catalan: nèciament — in an unwise manner
  • Dutch: onverstandig — in an unwise manner
  • Esperanto: malsaĝe — in an unwise manner
  • French: imprudemment — in an unwise manner
  • Icelandic: óskynsamlega — in an unwise manner
  • Portuguese: insensatamente — in an unwise manner