Unexplained

/ˌʌnɪkˈspleɪnd/

adjectivemedium📊CommonDescriptive
1 meaning3 questions

Definitions

1

Not having a reason or cause that has been made clear.

/ˌʌnɪkˈspleɪnd/

adjectiveneutralmedium
Descriptive

Not having been explained or accounted for

The sudden power outage was completely unexplained.

💡 Simply: Imagine you see something weird, like a flash of light in the sky, and nobody knows why it happened. That's unexplained!

👶 For kids: When something happens, but nobody knows why.

More Examples

2

There were unexplained absences from school.

3

The detective found the victim's death to be unexplained.

How It's Used

Science

"Scientists are investigating unexplained phenomena."

News

"The cause of the fire remains unexplained."

Literature

"The novel featured an unexplained disappearance."

From 'un-' (not) + 'explained'. The word emerged in the English language as the need arose to describe events, phenomena, or situations that lacked a clear or satisfactory explanation.

The use of 'unexplained' gained prominence in scientific and journalistic contexts, reflecting society's increasing focus on seeking explanations for events and phenomena.

Memory tip

Think of a mystery: something that remains *unexplained* needs a detective to solve it!

Word Origin

LanguageEnglish
Original meaning

"Not having been explained; not accounted for."

unexplained phenomenonunexplained causeunexplained eventunexplained disappearanceunexplained reason

Common misspellings

unexplaned

Usage

40%Spoken
60%Written