unfragmented
- adjective
- /ʌnˈfræŋɡmɛntɪd/
- The team studied an unfragmented area of forest, untouched by urban development, to observe natural ecosystems.
- an unfragmented habitat
Examples
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It is not at all surprising that when we step away and try to apply ourselves to the unfragmented text of a book, we have trouble.
Academic text (2010) -
Holmes RT, Sherry TW. 2001. Thirty-year bird population trends in an unfragmented temperate deciduous forest: Importance of habitat change. The Auk 118: 589-609.
Academic text (2012) -
The national park is home to vast, unfragmented landscapes that support diverse wildlife.
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To preserve biodiversity, it is crucial to maintain unfragmented habitats for various animal species.
Synonyms
A body or object that has no separate, repeating parts along its length
Not cut into slices
Whole and not divided into parts
Whole and not broken into pieces
Not divided into parts or sections
Not having parts that repeat along a body or structure
Antonyms
How Whole
Surface Forms
Morphology
unfragmented = fragmented (transparent) = un + fragment + ed
Built by prefixing 'un-' to 'fragmented' (itself 'fragment' + '-ed'), so the meaning 'not broken or divided' is directly compositional.
Etymology
Unfragmented is made of the prefix un- meaning 'not' and fragment meaning 'a broken piece', so it literally means 'not broken into parts' and describes something whole and connected. A helpful image is a forest not cut into small pieces or a complete puzzle, which shows why we use the word for things that stay whole and are not divided.