unintended

adjective

un·​in·​tend·​ed ˌən-in-ˈten-dəd How to pronounce unintended (audio)
Synonyms of unintendednext
: not planned as a purpose or goal : not deliberate or intended
an unintended consequence/effect
an unintended pregnancy

Synonyms of unintended

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Examples of unintended in a Sentence

backyard digging that resulted in unintended damage to buried phone wires a response that yielded an unintended insight into her personal character
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Without that coordination, a decision that appears appropriate in isolation can create an unintended consequence elsewhere in the family’s financial plan. — Elie Nour, Forbes.com, 20 Oct. 2026 To keep potentially sensitive information from being accessible to unintended people, the URLs typically contain a long sequence of text that can’t be easily guessed. — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 20 Oct. 2026 And as robotaxis continue to spread to new cities, local officials are discovering more unintended consequences of their new robot residents, leading to even more rules and an ever-growing patchwork of complexity for operators. — Andrew Hawkins, The Verge, 18 Oct. 2026 Aside from spreading fear and anxiety through the agricultural labor force — which might be the point, if the hope is many will self-deport — the surge is having some other bizarre and probably unintended consequences. — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for unintended

Word History

First Known Use

1649, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of unintended was in 1649

Rhymes for unintended

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Browse Nearby Words

unintelligible
unintended
unintentional
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Cite this Entry

“Unintended.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unintended. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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