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unwhole

unwhole

7.2
Missing a part so it is not complete
  • adjective
  • /ʌnˈhoʊl/
translation icon : incompleto
  • After the accident, she felt unwhole without her beloved car.

Examples

  • He looked unwhole without his usual smile and confidence.

  • He had lived with this place for almost a year, always unwhole, broken into small pieces.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • The puzzle felt unwhole with a missing piece.

Synonyms

holey
vsunwhole
1 4.2

Full of holes that let things pass through

is about lacking parts or incompleteness rather than heavy perforation
gappy
vsunwhole
1 6.5

With clear spaces where parts are missing, like a fence or teeth

is a general term for incompleteness beyond just gaps
holed
vsunwhole
3.6

A thing with holes from damage or wear

is broader meaning incomplete or missing parts beyond hole damage

Antonyms

1.0

Complete and not broken or divided

1.0

Complete with nothing missing

How Whole

complete
497 1.0
unwhole
7.2
incomplete
117 3.4
partial
203 3.4
fragmentary
5 7.0

Surface Forms

unwhole positive

Morphology

unwhole = whole (transparent) = un + whole

Meaning is directly derived from the negative prefix 'un-' applied to the common adjective 'whole' (not whole = incomplete).

Etymology

Unwhole is made from un- ('not') and whole ('complete'), so it literally means 'not whole' or missing a part. That's why we use it for things like a puzzle or sculpture that are incomplete.