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Glite Dictionary
of unsound mind

of unsound mind

1 9.0
Not able to think or decide clearly about important legal matters
  • idiom
  • Formal
translation icon : demente
  • After a thorough evaluation, the psychiatrist concluded that she was of unsound mind during the incidents.

Examples

  • What appears to have swayed the 12-strong jury in their extraordinary decision that she was 'of unsound mind' was their inability to believe that a sane woman could wish to cut herself off from her daughters and grandchildren.

    Academic text (2010)

  • Due to his condition, he was considered of unsound mind and was placed in a care facility.

  • Poor devil of unsound mind.

    Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943)

  • ''The jury finds that Madeleine Elster committed suicide... while of unsound mind.''

    Vertigo (1958)

  • What appears to have swayed the 12-strong jury in their extraordinary decision that she was 'of unsound mind' was their inability to believe that a sane woman could wish to cut herself off from her daughters and grandchildren.

    Academic text (2010)

  • The judge declared that the defendant was legally of unsound mind and therefore unfit for trial.

Synonyms

mentally ill
vsof unsound mind
  • Vulgar
77 3.4

Having a serious problem with thinking, feeling, or behaving because of a brain condition

refers specifically to lacking capacity for legal decisions rather than clinical diagnosis
incompetent
vsof unsound mind
  • Formal
17 6.8

Not allowed by law to make important legal decisions or speak in court

means lacking mental capacity for decisions rather than lacking skill or status
unsound
vsof unsound mind
  • Formal
3 8.4

Mentally ill and not able to manage personal affairs

focuses on lacking full mental capacity for legal decisions rather than illness
non compos mentis
vsof unsound mind
  • Formal
2 9.9

Mentally unable to manage your own affairs or stand trial

is the common English expression used instead of the Latin form

Antonyms

sane
119 3.2

Having a healthy mind and able to think clearly

competent
114 3.6

Able to do a job well because of skill and knowledge

How Competent

of sound mind
  • Formal
9 6.5
competent
114 3.6
of unsound mind
  • Formal
1 9.0

Surface Forms

of unsound mind positive

Morphology

of + unsound + mind

The phrase is directly compositional: 'unsound' negates 'sound', so 'unsound mind' literally means a mind that is not sound (i.e., not mentally healthy), with 'of' simply marking the relation. Although often used in formal/legal contexts, the meaning is predictable from the constituent words and similar constructions exist cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows 'unsound' and 'mind' would readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Of unsound mind may come from older uses of unsound to mean 'not healthy' or 'not solid', like rotten wood in a house. So unsound plus mind gives the image of a mind that is not healthy or steady, meaning 'not having full mental capacity'.