un-

Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to: navigation, search

Contents

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology 1

Privative, from Old English un-, from Proto-Germanic *un-, related to Latin in-, Ancient Greek ἀ- (modern Greek α-) and Sanskrit अ-.

[edit] Prefix

un-

  1. (added to adjectives or past participles) not
    unannounced — “not being announced”
    uneducated — “not educated”
    unattractive — “not attractive”
    unconstitutional — “not constitutional”
  2. (added to nouns) absent, lacking, not
    unrest — “a lack of rest (peace); war”
    unhope (despair)
    unfriend (enemy)
[edit] Usage notes
  • Some words formed in this way also have counterparts using in- or non-.
[edit] Derived terms
[edit] Translations

NOTE: Words using the prefix un- do not necessarily use the prefixes given here when translated. See individual words for more accurate translations.

[edit] Etymology 2

From Old English and-

[edit] Prefix

un- (added to verbs and nouns to form verbs)

  1. reverse, opposite
    to undress — “to take one's clothes off”
    to unwind — “to reverse a winding”
    to unlock — “to undo the locking of”
    • 1996, Diane Warren (writer), Toni Braxton (singer), “Un-Break My Heart”, Secrets, LaFace
      Un-cry these tears I cried so many nights / Un-break my heart
  2. release, free, remove, extract.
    to uncage — “to release from a cage”
    to untangle — “to remove the tangling of”
[edit] Usage notes
  • Only certain words can take un- to form a new word with the opposite meaning. In particular, verbs that describe an irreversible action produce words often considered nonsense, e.g. unkill, unspend, unlose, unring. These words may nevertheless be in occasional use for humorous or other effect.
[edit] Synonyms
[edit] Translations

NOTE: Words using the prefix un- do not necessarily use the prefixes given here when translated. See individual words for more accurate translations.

[edit] Etymology 3

From Latin ūnus

[edit] Prefix

un-

  1. Used to form temporary names of elements (such as ununbium) whose existence has been predicted, and have not yet been given a systematic name.
[edit] Synonyms

[edit] References


[edit] German

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Prefix

un-

  1. un- (denoting absence, a lack of; violative of; contrary to)

[edit] Gothic

[edit] Romanization

un-

  1. Romanization of 𐌿𐌽-

[edit] Manx

[edit] Etymology

From un (one).

[edit] Prefix

un-

  1. uni-, mono-, one

[edit] Derived terms


[edit] Old English

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Etymology 1

Proto-Germanic *un-, from Proto-Indo-European *n̥-, a prefix use of the particle *ne (not). Cognate with Old Saxon un- (Dutch on-), Old High German un- (German un-), Old Norse ó- (Swedish o-, Norwegian u), and Gothic 𐌿𐌽- (un-). The Indo-European root is also the source of Greek α- (a-), αν- (an-), Latin in-, and Old Irish in-.

[edit] Prefix

un-

  1. (added to nouns and adjectives) negation, privation, or absence of
  2. bad, used to denote a pejorative sense (compare mis-, mal-)
    undǣd "un-deed, a bad deed"
    unlǣċe (bad physician)
  3. (added to verbs) down
    unsettan (to set down, put down)

[edit] Etymology 2

Originally identical with and-, from Proto-Germanic *and-. Cognate with Old Frisian und-, Old Saxon ant-, Old High German ant- (German ent-).

[edit] Alternative forms

[edit] Prefix

un-

  1. Forming verbs from verbs, with an opposite or reversive sense.
Personal tools
Namespaces
Variants
Views
Actions
Navigation
Toolbox
In other languages