unknown

English

Etymology

From un- +‎ known, past participle of know. Cf. Old English ungecnawen.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ʌnˈnəʊn/, X-SAMPA: /Vn"n@Un/
• (US) enPR: ŭn-nōnʹ, IPA: /ʌnˈnoʊn/, X-SAMPA: /Vn"noUn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

unknown (not comparable)

1. Not known; unidentified; not well known.

Synonyms

anonymous unfamiliar uncharted undiscovered

unexplored unidentified unnamed unrecognized

unrevealed unascertained obscure unsung

Translations

not known

• Albanian: panjohur (sq)
• Arabic: مجهول (ar) (majhūl)
• Catalan: desconegut (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 未知 (cmn) (wèizhī), 不明 (cmn) (bùmíng)

• Czech: neznámý (cs) m
• Danish: ubekendt (da), ukendt (da)
• Dutch: onbekend (nl), ongekend (nl), ongeweten (nl)
• Esperanto: nekonata (eo)
• Finnish: tuntematon (fi)
• French: inconnu (fr)
• Galician: descoñecido (gl)
• German: unbekannt (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: ἄγνωστος (agnōstos), ἄγνωτος (agnōtos)

• Hungarian: ismeretlen (hu)

• Icelandic: óþekktur (is) m, ókunnur (is) m
• Indonesian: tak diketahui
• Italian: ignoto (it), sconosciuto (it)
• Japanese: 未知 (ja) (みち, michi), 不明 (ja) (ふめい, fumei), 知らない (ja) (しらない, shiranai)
• Kurdish:

  Sorani: نه‌ناسراو

• Latin: incognitus (la), ignoratus (la), ignotus (la), nescitus (la), obscurus (la)
• Norwegian: ukjent (no)
• Persian: مجهول (fa) (najhul)
• Polish: nieznany (pl)
• Portuguese: desconhecido (pt) m, desconhecida (pt) f
• Romanian: necunoscut, neștiut, obscur
• Russian: неизвестный (ru) (neizvestnyj) (neizvéstnij)
• Slovene: neznano (sl)
• Spanish: ignoto (es), desconocido (es)

Noun

unknown (plural unknowns)

1. (algebra) A variable (usually x, y or z) whose value is to be found.
2. Any fact or place about which nothing is known (as in the phrase "into the unknown").
3. A person of no identity; a nonentity
   • 1965, Bob Dylan, Like a Rolling Stone

     How does it feel

     To be on your own

     With no direction home

     Like a complete unknown

     Like a rolling stone?

Translations

variable

• Finnish: tuntematon (fi)
• French: inconnue (fr) f
• German: Unbekannte (de) f
• Hungarian: ismeretlen (hu)

• Icelandic: óþekkt stærð (is) f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: непозната (sh) f

  Roman: nepoznata (sh) f

fact or place

• Finnish: tuntematon (fi)
• French: inconnu (fr) m

• Hungarian: ismeretlen (hu)

person of no identity

• German: Unbekannter (de) m

• Hungarian: idegen (hu)