unwonted

Examples

• All

• Santerese hesitated, finally said, with unwonted seriousness, "You remember I asked you if you had a relative, doll?"

  Fiction book (1990)

• As Barthes describes, "it is an unwonted time, a time for nothing."

  Academic text (1998)

• Puzzled and disturbed at the unwonted absence of his native friends, Bougainville sent out Prince Charles to reconnoitre.

  Fiction book (1991)

• And Gudjen was bringing me a pitcher, telling me to wash and dress, pointing to a heap of clothing on a bench as if nothing unwonted had passed.

  Fiction book (1993)

• "With unwonted frankness, he spoke about losing one position after another in the global economic race, about "glaring shortcomings in our health services," and he kept emphasizing that "unless we activate the human factor, it will be impossible for us to change the situation in the country."

  Academic text (1991)

• In a review of The Concept of Repression, he had said that Bose laid "especial and unwonted stress on the tendency to polarity in the human mind."

  Academic text (1990)

• The "unwonted" movement of the trees is "distressing" precisely because it evokes the drama and the instability that likewise characterize the life of the natural world.

  Academic text (2016)

• At the first meeting of the township council, at which council members were sworn in, the judge who administered the oath seemed to be in a state of shock from his amazement at the unwonted (and unwanted) presence of four newly elected Democrats.

  Academic text (1993)

• The artist's unwonted approach to painting captured everyone's attention.

• Her unwonted enthusiasm for the project inspired the entire team to work harder.

Synonyms

S

strange

vsunwonted

∞ 2.3

Unusual and slightly odd in a way you cannot easily understand

is more formal and does not imply puzzling oddness

U

unusual

vsunwonted

∞ 2.2

Not common and different from what people expect

is the formal or literary variant emphasizing lack of custom

O

odd

vsunwonted

798 1.0

Different from what is normal or expected

is the formal alternative stressing absence of customary nature

U

unexpected

vsunwonted

392 2.5

Happening without warning

is a formal literary term for something not customary or expected

C

curious

vsunwonted

131 4.0

Strange or unusual in a way that attracts attention

is a literary formal term without the sense of oddity

P

peculiar

vsunwonted

123 4.6

Different from what is normal and expected

is a formal or literary way to note lack of custom

U

uncommon

vsunwonted

122 4.6

Not often found or seen and so rare

reads as a formal label for that same rarity

U

uncharacteristic

vsunwonted

14 5.4

Not usual for a person or thing

is used in formal writing to mark what is not customary

U

unseen

vsunwonted

12 5.1

Not expected before and causing trouble or surprise

reads as a formal or literary description of the same idea

U

unanticipated

vsunwonted

10 5.8

Happening suddenly without warning

is used in formal or literary contexts rather than plain speech

U

unheralded

vsunwonted

1 7.4

Happening suddenly without warning

is stylistically formal and emphasizes being not customary

U

unpredicted

vsunwonted

1 5.1

Happening when no one expects it

is the more formal label for that same lack of expectation

U

unlooked-for

vsunwonted

1 8.0

Not expected and coming as a surprise

is more literary and stresses being not customary rather than surprise

U

unthought

vsunwonted

1 9.5

Not imagined or expected before

is the literary or formal equivalent focusing on custom and expectation

U

unordinary

vsunwonted

1 7.0

Not usual and different from what you expect

is a more formal expression for something that breaks custom

U

unhoped-for

vsunwonted

7.8

An unexpected pleasant event that brings good results

is a formal term that does not imply positive feeling

U

unhoped

vsunwonted

9.9

Very unexpected and better than anyone imagined

is a neutral formal expression of being not customary

U

unthought-of

vsunwonted

7.9

No one expects it before it happens

is a formal way to say something is not customary or expected

N

non-typical

vsunwonted

4.8

Not usual or expected

is the literary formal term rather than everyday wording

U

unaverage

vsunwonted

7.8

Different from what most people expect

is a formal descriptor focusing on being not customary

Antonyms

C

customary

70 3.5

Something done because of tradition or habit

N

normal

35 1.0

The usual or expected state

How Usual

habitual

28 4.0

ordinary

683 1.0

unwonted

• Literature

1 9.9

unprecedented

235 6.3

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology