Unaware
adjectiveHaving no knowledge or perception of a situation or fact.
How to spell unaware
7 letters · 3 syllables
How to pronounce unaware
Say the part in capitals loudest.
What does unaware mean?
- adjectiveHaving no knowledge or perception of a situation or fact.
Unaware in a sentence
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She was completely unaware of the change to the meeting time.
-
Many drivers remain unaware of the new parking rules.
Where does unaware come from?
Language of origin: Germanic
The word is built on 'aware', which descends from the Old English 'gewær', meaning 'watchful', 'cautious', or 'on guard'. That root is connected to the same ancient sense of being wary or keeping a careful eye out, and it survives today in the related words 'wary' and 'beware'. The negative prefix 'un-', meaning simply 'not', is a thoroughly native Old English element, and combining it with 'aware' produced 'unaware' to describe someone who has no knowledge or perception of something. The form appears in English from around the sixteenth century. Because the heart of the word is 'ware' (the same 'ware' you see in 'beware'), the spelling trap is remembering it ends in '-ware' rather than the trickier-looking spellings people sometimes reach for.
How the word is built
- un- (not)
- a- (intensive, from Old English on)
- ware (watchful, mindful)
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