unspokenadj.
/(ˌ)ʌnˈspəʊk(ə)n/, U.S. /ˌənˈspoʊkən/ 1. Not spoken of. †Also with to.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > hiding, concealing from view > keeping from knowledge > [adjective] > not mentioned
unsaidc1000
untouchedc1380
untoldc1386
unreckoneda1425
undescrived1435
unrehearsedc1443
unrecitedc1487
unrecountedc1487
unspoken1487
unpronounced1496
unconfesseda1500
indiscussed1534
unmentioned1545
unpreachedc1555
unexpressed1561
unquoted1567
undescribed1575
unreported1576
unrepeated1577
uncited1581
unalleged1587
undelated1597
untalked1599
unspoke1608
unrelated1611
unuttered1651
unimparted1655
unlanguaged1677
uncommented1751
unchanted1820
unwhispered1821
unbreatheda1827
unpoetized1831
unenounceda1856
unvoiced1859
unworded1860
unstated1864
unadmitted1895
1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xv. 268 Till king Robert will we gang, That we haf vnspokyn of lang.
?c1535 L. Cox Arte Rhethorycke (new ed.) sig. Cvv I can nat let passe his..diuine wysdome vnspoken of.
1588 T. Kyd tr. T. Tasso Housholders Philos. f. 27v Albeit somethings vnspoken of might be reuiued and produced.
1607 S. Collins Serm. Paules-Crosse 35 I am faine to passe by some things of moment, vnspoken-to here.
1634 T. Herbert Relation Some Yeares Trauaile 147 The [Persian] women as vnseene may passe vnspoken of.
2. Not spoken, unsaid, unuttered; not expressed in speech.
ΚΠ
c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 373 The oon premisse is expressid..and the other premysse is stille vnspokun for schortnes.
1461 T. Playter in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 263 Desyreng þe said schref if ony thyng of þe Kynges commaunded were be-hynd vnspoken by hymself that [etc.].
1548 W. Patten Exped. Scotl. L v Causes..that..ar better vnspoken then vttred.
1577 J. Grange Golden Aphroditis sig. Kiij No doubte but I.I. wished his wordes vnspoken.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) v. vi. 139 Thou'lt torture me to leave vnspoken, that Which to be spoke, wou'd torture thee. View more context for this quotation
1640 F. Quarles Enchyridion iii. xxxii A word unspoken is like the Sword in thy Scabberd, thine.
a1774 O. Goldsmith She stoops to Conquer Epil., in Misc. Wks. (1801) II. 85 And that our friendship may remain unbroken, What if we leave the Epilogue unspoken?
1818 S. T. Coleridge Gen. Introd. or Treat. on Method 13 in Encycl. Metrop. I The unspoken alphabet of nature.
1862 J. Skelton Nugæ Criticæ v. 210 Rigorous edicts..which punished the unspoken thought as well as the visible act.
3. Not spoken to; unaddressed.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > bad behaviour > discourtesy > [adjective] > not spoken to
unspokena1617
the mind > language > speech > conversation > addressing or speaking to > [adjective] > not addressed
unspokena1617
a1617 S. Hieron Doctrines Triall in Wks. (1620) II. 23 I shall also teach that which shall be for the best behoofe of euery one in this assembly, that so none may goe away vnspoken to.
1721 J. Kelly Compl. Coll. Scotish Prov. 249 When People out of Bashfulness leave..a Person unspoken to.
1855 A. Trollope Warden vi. 98 She had sat the whole evening through,..not speaking, and unspoken to.
4.
a. Scottish. Without having spoken. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > taciturnity or reticence > [adjective] > without having spoken
unspoken1597
1597 in J. Stuart Misc. Spalding Club (1841) I. 91 Jonet Wischert..commandit..Katherine Ewyn to ryss airlie befoir the sone, on betechit hir self to God, and on spokin.
b. (See quot. 1825.)
ΚΠ
1825 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Suppl. Unspoken water, water..brought..to the house of a sick person, without the bearer's speaking either in going or returning.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1926; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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adj.c1449