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

Her writing has often revealed what was previously hidden, parsed what was unconscious, be it the miasmic unease of the late 1960s or the subterranean structures of national politics.

From Washington Post

Gideon is then rendered unconscious by an unseen hand, and when he wakes again, Angie has disappeared.

From Washington Post

Remote workplaces can also help eliminate unconscious bias in hiring, for example, when interviews are conducted over the phone instead of via video interviews.

From Fortune

When she caught up, he was sprawled on the side of the road, unconscious.

From Washington Post

Incubation is as unconscious as it is real, and it enhances creativity.

From Nautilus

When he invited her to play in a charity game, she got knocked unconscious when he passed her the ball.

From The Daily Beast

This renders the patient unconscious and thus, effectively relieves pain.

From The Daily Beast

One of the mobs caught Dr. Saptal Singh, beat him unconscious—and presuming him dead—threw his body off a train.

From The Daily Beast

“The punches and kicks eventually knocked me unconscious and left me completely unresponsive,” Singh explained.

From The Daily Beast

Some people were chased; some robbed; two men were beaten unconscious.

From The Daily Beast

It began with certain postulates, or assumptions, to a great extent unconscious, of the conditions to which it applied.

From Project Gutenberg

In this way child's play, like primitive art, shows a certain unconscious selectiveness.

From Project Gutenberg

He was apparently equally unconscious of anything extraordinary in the situation.

From Project Gutenberg

In a dream he crossed the crowded hall, avoiding various acquaintances with unconscious cunning.

From Project Gutenberg

Nancy was little the worse for the awful accident, bruised, of course, but poor Masters was unconscious.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

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