Unbalanced

How to spell unbalanced

10 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce unbalanced

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does unbalanced mean?

1. adjectiveLacking an even distribution of weight, proportion, or amounts so that one side outweighs the other.
2. adjectiveAffected by mental instability or emotional disturbance.

Unbalanced in a sentence

• The washing machine was unbalanced because all the towels bunched on one side.

• Witnesses described the suspect as unbalanced and prone to sudden outbursts.

• The report gave an unbalanced view that ignored the opposing arguments.

• The letters grew increasingly unbalanced and threatening over the weeks.

Where does unbalanced come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word combines the native English prefix un-, meaning 'not', with 'balance', which travelled into English from Old French 'balance' and ultimately from the Latin 'bilanx'. That Latin term literally described a scale 'having two pans', built from 'bi-' meaning 'two' and 'lanx' meaning 'plate' or 'pan', so the original image was the pair of dishes on a weighing balance. From the idea of two pans hanging level came the broader senses of equilibrium, steadiness, and even-handed accounting. By the 1600s English writers were applying 'unbalanced' to anything thrown out of equilibrium, including accounts that did not add up and, a little later, a mind no longer steady. The spelling trap is mostly the single 'l' in 'balanced' (not 'ballanced') and the plain '-ed' ending sitting after the silent-feeling middle syllable.

How the word is built

• un- (not)
• balance (root, from Latin bilanx: having two pans)
• -ed (adjective/past-participle suffix)