Standard Lemma guide

unwritten

adj · verb · 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.

  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: AH0 N R IH1 T AH0 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Not written.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Oral or otherwise communicated without writing.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

Implicit or understood but not formally articulated.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Examples

  • It's an unwritten rule that you lock the gate when you leave the swimming pool.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adj

Meaning 4

Containing no writing; blank.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Examples

  • unwritten paper

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

past participle of unwrite

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

6

adjective

Meaning 6

based on custom rather than documentation- J.L.T.C.Spence

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • an unwritten law
  • rites...so ancient that they well might have had their unwritten origins in Aurignacian times

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: written

7

adjective satellite

Meaning 7

said or done without having been planned or written in advance

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he made a few ad-lib remarks

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: ad-lib, spontaneous

Antonyms: none provided

8

adjective satellite

Meaning 8

using speech rather than writing

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • an oral tradition
  • an oral agreement

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: oral

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Middle English unwriten, from Old English unwriten, unġewriten (“unwritten”), equivalent to un- + written.

Across languages

Translations

39 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Assamese: নিলিখা (nilikha) — not written
  • Assamese: লিখা নথকা (likha nothoka) — not written
  • Chinese Mandarin: 不成文的 (bùchéngwén de) — not written
  • Czech: nepsaný — not written
  • Dutch: ongeschreven — not written
  • Finnish: kirjoittamaton — not written
  • French: inécrit — not written
  • Georgian: დაუწერელი (dauc̣ereli) — not written
  • German: ungeschrieben — not written
  • Greek: άγραφος (ágrafos) — not written
  • Ancient Greek: ἄγραφος (ágraphos) — not written
  • Hindi: अनलिखा (anlikhā) — not written
  • Japanese: 書かれていない (kakareteinai) — not written
  • Japanese: 白紙の (hakushi no) — not written
  • Latin: inscriptus — not written
  • Macedonian: непишан (nepišan) — not written
  • Manx: gyn screeu — not written
  • Norwegian: uskreven — not written
  • Russian: непи́саный (nepísanyj) — not written
  • Serbo-Croatian: нѐпӣса̄н — not written
  • Serbo-Croatian: nèpīsān — not written
  • Greek: άγραφος (ágrafos) — communicated without writing
  • Manx: beill — communicated without writing
  • Manx: beeal — communicated without writing
  • Russian: у́стный (ústnyj) — communicated without writing
  • Finnish: kirjoittamaton — implicit or understood but not formally articulated
  • Finnish: julkilausumaton — implicit or understood but not formally articulated
  • Finnish: implisiittinen — implicit or understood but not formally articulated
  • Greek: άγραφος (ágrafos) — implicit or understood but not formally articulated
  • Hungarian: íratlan — implicit or understood but not formally articulated
  • Portuguese: consuetudinário — implicit or understood but not formally articulated
  • Russian: непи́саный (nepísanyj) — implicit or understood but not formally articulated
  • Russian: негла́сный (neglásnyj) — implicit or understood but not formally articulated
  • Finnish: kirjoittamaton — containing no writing; blank
  • Finnish: tyhjä — containing no writing; blank
  • Greek: άγραφος (ágrafos) — containing no writing; blank
  • Hungarian: írástalan — containing no writing; blank
  • Hungarian: üres — containing no writing; blank
  • Russian: чи́стый (čístyj) — containing no writing; blank