Unsolicited

How to spell unsolicited

11 letters · 5 syllables

How to pronounce unsolicited

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does unsolicited mean?

1. adjectiveGiven, sent, or offered without having been requested or asked for.

Unsolicited in a sentence

• The firm receives dozens of unsolicited job applications every week.

• She deleted the unsolicited marketing emails without opening them.

Where does unsolicited come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb sollicitare, which meant 'to disturb, agitate, or urge', built from sollicitus 'thoroughly stirred up or anxious', a compound of sollus 'whole, entire' and citus 'set in motion' (the past participle of ciere, 'to move or rouse'). The verb 'solicit' entered English through Old French solliciter in the fifteenth century, first carrying the sense of managing affairs or earnestly requesting something. Adding the native prefix un- (meaning 'not') and the past-participle ending -ed produced an adjective describing anything offered or sent without being asked for. The single letter c and the single l are the usual spelling traps, since the Latin original carried a double l that English has dropped. The related word 'solicitous', meaning anxiously attentive, preserves the older sense of being stirred up with concern.

How the word is built

• un- (not)
• solicit (from Latin sollicitare: to disturb, urge)
• -ed (adjective ending)