unwanted

UK/ʌnˈwɒntɪd/US/ʌnˈwɒntɪd/

adjectiveB1Common in everyday speech and writing · #7,214 of 15,258neutral

Unwanted means not wanted by anybody. Unwanted attention, unwanted gifts, unwanted advice.

It says nothing about the thing's quality, only about whether it was asked for, which is what makes unwanted attention such a precise phrase — the problem is the wanting, not the attention. Unwanted differs from unwelcome, which describes the reception. Note that the un- attaches to the participle, not to want.

Definitions of unwanted

1adjectiveunwantedNot wanted by anybody.B1
“She took her unwanted clothes to the charity shop.”

unwanted is a quality of not being desired.

Where it comes from

From un- + wanted.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Word Building

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unwanted in the wild

In audio engineering, noise can refer to the unwanted residual electronic noise signal that gives rise to acoustic noise heard as a hiss.
Noise
Beneficiaries (technically referents) of security may be persons and social groups, objects and institutions, ecosystems, or any other entity or phenomenon vulnerable to unwanted change.
Security
Acoustic quieting and noise control can be used to limit unwanted noise.
Soundproofing
The noise is a summation of unwanted or disturbing energy from natural and sometimes man-made sources.
Noise (electronics)
Intrusive thoughts may also be associated with episodic memory, unwanted worries or memories from OCD, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), other anxiety disorders, eating disorders, or psychosis.
Intrusive thought

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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