unconscious

[ uhn-kon-shuhs ]

adjective

1. not conscious; without awareness, sensation, or cognition.
2. temporarily devoid of consciousness.
3. not perceived at the level of awareness; occurring below the level of conscious thought:

   an unconscious impulse.

4. not consciously realized, planned, or done; without conscious volition or intent:

   an unconscious social slight.

5. not endowed with mental faculties:

   the unconscious stones.

noun

1. the unconscious, Psychoanalysis. the part of the mind containing psychic material that is only rarely accessible to awareness but that has a pronounced influence on behavior.

unconscious

/ ʌnˈkɒnʃəs /

adjective

1. lacking normal sensory awareness of the environment; insensible
2. not aware of one's actions, behaviour, etc

   unconscious of his bad manners

3. characterized by lack of awareness or intention

   an unconscious blunder

4. coming from or produced by the unconscious

   unconscious resentment

noun

1. psychoanal the part of the mind containing instincts, impulses, images, and ideas that are not available for direct examination See also collective unconscious Compare subconscious preconscious

unconscious

1. The part of the psyche lying far below consciousness and not easily raised into consciousness. In Freudian psychology, the unconscious cannot be directly observed with the conscious mind, but it has its own processes and deeply affects conscious thought.

Derived Forms

• unˈconsciously, adverb

Other Words From

• un·con·scious·ly adverb
• un·con·scious·ness noun
• qua·si-un·con·scious adjective
• self-un·con·scious adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of unconscious¹

First recorded in 1705–15; 1915–20 unconscious fordef 6; un- ¹ + conscious

Example Sentences

Just 18 minutes later, Mr Stockton rang 999 to report Charlie had fallen unconscious.

From BBC

Mr Bailey added the prosecution's case was that Mr Sidpara inflicted many or most of the injuries to Ms Riaz "while she was unconscious or helpless".

From BBC

"We performed medical examinations on two men who were lying unconscious...Unfortunately, their injuries were too severe and after the examinations we had to determine the death of both of them."

From BBC

Some of the victims appear to be unconscious.

From BBC

“It’s not normal for four people to go unconscious at one time,” Pardo said.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• innate
• instinctive
• latent
• lost
• repressed
• subliminal
• suppressed