Unmarked

How to spell unmarked

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce unmarked

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does unmarked mean?

1. adjectiveHaving no marks, labels, or distinguishing features.

Unmarked in a sentence

• The detectives followed the suspect in an unmarked car.

• The cash was delivered in plain, unmarked envelopes.

Where does unmarked come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This word is built from three native English pieces. The core, 'mark', descends from the Old English 'mearc', which originally meant a boundary, a border, or a sign set up to show one, and is closely related to words in other Germanic languages for edge or frontier. Over time 'mark' broadened from a boundary line to any visible sign, stain, or token. The prefix 'un-' is the old Germanic negative, meaning simply 'not', and the '-ed' ending turns the noun into an adjective describing something that lacks the thing named. Put together since the late Middle Ages, 'unmarked' literally means 'not bearing a mark', which covers everything from a parcel without a label to a police car without insignia. The spelling is mercifully transparent: it is just the three parts spelled in full, with no doubling or silent letters to trip the writer.

How the word is built

• un- (not)
• mark (from Old English mearc: a sign or boundary)
• -ed (adjective suffix)