unkempt
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unkempt
- /ˌʌnˈkɛm(p)t/ UK, US
Rhymes with -ɛmpt
Where it comes from
From earlier unkembed, unkemmed, from Middle English unkempt (“uncombed”), equivalent to un- + kempt. Compare Old Norse úkembdr (uncombed; unkempt"; whence Icelandic ókembdur), German ungekämmt (“unkempt”), Dutch ongekamd. More at kemb.
adjective more unkempt · most unkempt · uncompt
-
uncombed, dishevelled.
He was a queer shoot, again, in his unkempt longish hair and slovenly clothes, a sort of very vulgar down-at-heel American in appearance.
Similar: dishevelled, slovenly, ragged
- Disorderly; untidy; messy; not kept up. unkempt bedroom
- Rough; unpolished.
Similar: bedraggled, blowsy, dishevelled, dowdy, dowdyish, down at heel, downgone, qualifier, draggle-tailed, draggled, frowsy, frumpy, grotty, grufty, grungy, hashy, mangy, mean, out at the heels, piggy, ragtag, ribby, schleppy, schlumpy, scratty, scrofulous, scroungy, scruffy, scrungy, seedy · Opposite: clean, foppish, neat, orderly, stylish, tidy
Thesaurus
adjective
Similar: bedraggled, blowsy, dishevelled, dowdy, dowdyish, down at heel, downgone, qualifier, draggle-tailed, draggled, frowsy, frumpy, grotty, grufty, grungy, hashy, mangy, mean, out at the heels, piggy, ragtag, ribby, schleppy, schlumpy, scratty, scrofulous, scroungy, scruffy, scrungy, seedy · Opposite: clean, foppish, neat, orderly, stylish, tidy
Translations
Every language
adj dishevelled; untidy; dirty; not kept up
| Español | desaliñado, despeinado, desprolijo |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 不修邊幅 /不修边幅 bùxiūbiānfú, 邋遢 lāta |
| Português | desgrenhado |
| Français | ébouriffé |
| Deutsch | schäbig, struppig, ungepflegt, ungekämmt, ungemacht, unaufgeräumt |
| Italiano | scompigliato |
| Ελληνικά | απεριποίητος aperipoíitos |
| Русский | неря́шливый nerjášlivyj, неопря́тный neoprjátnyj, нечёсаный nečósanyj, взъеро́шенный vzʺjeróšennyj, растрёпанный rastrjópannyj, всклоко́ченный vsklokóčennyj |
| Tiếng Việt | bù xù |
Talk about this word "unkempt." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/unkempt. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. unkempt. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/unkempt "unkempt." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/unkempt.Cite this
@misc{unkempt_2026,
title = {unkempt},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/unkempt},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
