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UNKNOWN
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
A variable whose values are solutions of an equation
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents
Hypernyms ("unknown" is a kind of...):
variable (a symbol (like x or y) that is used in mathematical or logical expressions to represent a variable quantity)
Derivation:
unknown (not known)
Sense 2
Meaning:
An unknown and unexplored region
Example:
they came like angels out the unknown
Synonyms:
terra incognita; unknown; unknown region
Classified under:
Nouns denoting spatial position
Hypernyms ("unknown" is a kind of...):
region (a large indefinite location on the surface of the Earth)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("unknown" is a kind of...):
interloper; intruder; trespasser (someone who intrudes on the privacy or property of another without permission)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "unknown"):
foreigner; outsider (someone who is excluded from or is not a member of a group)
Derivation:
unknown (not known)
II. (adjective)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Being or having an unknown or unnamed source
Example:
an unnamed donor
Synonyms:
nameless; unidentified; unknown; unnamed
Classified under:
Similar:
anon.; anonymous (having no known name or identity or known source)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Not known before
Example:
don't let anyone unknown into the house
Synonyms:
strange; unknown
Classified under:
Similar:
unfamiliar (not known or well known)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Not famous or acclaimed
Example:
unsung heroes of the war
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
inglorious (not bringing honor and glory)
Sense 4
Meaning:
Not known
Example:
an unknown source
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
unidentified (not yet identified)
unheard-of (previously unknown)
undiscovered; unexplored (not yet discovered)
chartless; uncharted; unmapped ((of unknown regions) not yet surveyed or investigated)
little-known (unknown to most people)
unbeknown; unbeknownst ((usually used with 'to') occurring or existing without the knowledge of)
undiagnosed (eluding diagnosis)
Also:
inglorious (not bringing honor and glory)
unfamiliar (not known or well known)
unacknowledged (not recognized or admitted)
Antonym:
known (apprehended with certainty)
Derivation:
unknown (a variable whose values are solutions of an equation)
unknown (anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found)
Sense 5
Meaning:
Not known to exist
Example:
things obscurely felt surged up from unknown depths
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
unsuspected (not suspected or believed likely)
Context examples:
What happened in the world before that time is all unknown to me.
(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)
Using these data, the researchers identified 66 blood-pressure associated regions of the genome (loci), 17 of which were previously unknown.
(The genetics of blood pressure, NIH)
The accuracy of aminoacylation inside living cells, however, was unknown.
(Genes Can be Read in Different Ways, NIH, US)
Ah, she replied, the way is so long, and what shall I do in a strange land where I am unknown?
(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)
Observations of “Jellyfish galaxies” with ESO’s Very Large Telescope have revealed a previously unknown way to fuel supermassive black holes.
(Supermassive Black Holes Feed on Cosmic Jellyfish, ESO)
Taking a different approach, scientists evaluated the sesame antibody test in a group of 119 children with food allergy whose sesame-allergic status was unknown.
(17% of Food-Allergic Children Have Sesame Allergy, National Institutes of Health)
How comes it that he is unknown?
(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
An indication that a question was asked and the response is unknown.
(Asked but Unknown, NCI Thesaurus)
Upon administration, ATR-101 selectively kills adrenal and adrenal cancer cells, through an unknown mechanism.
(ATR-101, NCI Thesaurus)
“We can measure the unknown only by the known,” I replied, in my finest academic manner.
(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)
