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unloved

unloved

15 3.4
Not cared for or shown affection
  • adjective
  • /ʌnˈlʌvd/
translation icon : desatendido
  • She felt completely unloved after her friends stopped inviting her to their gatherings.
  • feeling unloved

I felt very unloved in a lot of different aspects.

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Examples

  • Growing up in a large family, he often felt unloved and overlooked by his parents.

  • Many stray animals are unloved and in need of a caring home.

  • I felt very unloved in a lot of different aspects.

  • I know what it's like to be unloved.

  • I felt unloved and unwanted.

  • Dorothy grew up alone and unloved and never really had a childhood.

    Academic text (2000)
  • No child should ever be alone, unloved, and left to fend for himself.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • I feel anxious, I feel unloved, I feel disconnected, I feel afraid.

  • I'm also feeling very unloved and unappreciated by my husband right at the moment.

    Blog text (34)
  • In the emotionally abusive family, the child feels unloved and unwanted.

    Academic text (2000)

Synonyms

bereft
vsunloved
  • Literature
19 7.5

Feeling very sad and alone because someone you love or something important is missing

describes absence of affection or care rather than the resulting sadness
loveless
vsunloved
14 4.2

Having no love or warm feelings

is about missing affection and attention rather than only emotional coldness
uncared-for
vsunloved
1 4.2

Not looked after and left in bad condition

also means missing affection and emotional attention as well as physical care
unbeloved
vsunloved
9.3

Not loved or cared for by others

includes absence of both affection and practical care or everyday attention
neglected
vsunloved
3.7

Not cared for or looked after so it becomes damaged

also covers absence of affection rather than only practical neglect

Antonyms

68 2.9

Someone looks after them to keep them healthy and safe

1.0

A person or thing that someone cares about very much

How Loved

cherished
1 3.4
loved
1.0
cared-for
68 2.9
unloved
15 3.4
neglected
3.7
hated
1 2.0

Surface Forms

unloved positive

Morphology

unloved = loved (transparent) = un + love + ed

The adjective is formed by prefixing 'un-' to the past-participle/adjective 'loved', producing the clear negated meaning 'not loved'.

Etymology

Unloved is made from the prefix un- and loved, where un- means 'not' and loved comes from the verb 'love', so it literally means 'not loved'. Like in unhappy, the un- part makes the opposite, which is why unloved describes people or things that lack care or affection.