"U" Word Origins

unstrain

Origin

From un- + strain.

unstrange

Origin

From un- + strange.

unstudious

Origin

From un- + studious.

unsubmissive

Origin

From un- + submissive.

unsubscribe

Latin

From un- 'reverse of' plus subscribe, from Latin subscribere 'to write underneath, to sign'.

unsubstantiated

Origin

From unsubstantiate + -ed.

unsuccessfully

Origin

From unsuccessful + -ly or un- + successfully.

unsuction

Origin

From un- + suction.

unsufferable

Origin

From un- + suffer + -able.

unsullied

Origin

From un- + sullied.

unsuperheated

Origin

From un- + superheated.

unsupervised

Origin

From un- + supervised.

unsupportable

Origin

From Middle English unsupportable, equivalent to un- + supportable.

unsupported

Origin

From Middle English unsupported, equivalent to un- + supported.

unsure

Middle English

From Middle English unsure, equivalent to un- + sure. Piecewise doublet of insecure and unsecure.

unsurvivable

Origin

From un- + survivable.

unsynonymous

Origin

From un- + synonymous.

unsystematic

Origin

From un- + systematic.

untame

Origin

From Middle English untamen, *untemien (attested as untemed), equivalent to un- (“back; reverse”) + tame.

untamed

Middle English

From Middle English untamed, untemed, equivalent to un- + tamed and/or untame + -ed. Compare Dutch ongetemd (“untamed”), German ungezähmt (“untamed”), Danish utæmmet (“untamed”), Swedish otämd (“untamed”), Icelandic ótamin (“untamed”).

untangle

Origin

From un- + tangle.

untasteable

Origin

From un- + tasteable.

untaught

Origin

From Middle English untauȝt; equivalent to un- + taught.

unthankful

Origin

From Middle English unthankful, from Old English unþancful, unþancfull, unġeþancfull (“unthankful, ungrateful”), equivalent to un- + thankful. Cognate with Old High German undankfol (“unthankful, ungrateful”).

unthaw

Origin

From un- (intensifier) + thaw.

unthrifty

Origin

From Middle English unthrifty. By surface analysis, un + thrifty.

unthriving

Origin

From un- + thriving.

untidy

Origin

From un- + tidy.

untie

Middle English

From Middle English untien, unteyen, untyȝen, untiȝen, from Old English untīġan (“to untie”), equivalent to un- + tie.

untied

Origin

From untie + -ed.

until

Middle English

From Middle English vntil, until, untill, ontil, ontill, perhaps representing a northern variant of Middle English unto (see Modern English unto). By surface analysis, un- (“against; toward; up to”) + till.

untime

Origin

From Middle English untime, untyme, ontyme, from Old English untīma (“an unseasonable time”), from Proto-Germanic *untīmô, equivalent to un- + time. Cognate with Old Norse útími (dialectal Norwegian otime).

untimely

Middle English

From Middle English untymely (also earlier untimliche), equivalent to un- + timely. First attested in the early 13th century. Compare Middle Danish utimelig, Old English untídlic (“unseasonable”).

unto

Middle English

Inherited from Middle English unto, from Old English *untō, *und tō, equivalent to un- (“against; toward; up to”) + to. Cognate with Old Frisian ont to ("until"; > Saterland Frisian antou (“until”)) (cf. Old Frisian und (“up to; till”), Old Frisian til (“till; to”)), Old Saxon untō, untuo (“until”), Old High German unze, unzi, unza (“until”), Old Norse und (“as far as; up to”), Gothic 𐌿𐌽𐍄𐌴 (untē, “until; as long as”).

untogetherness

Origin

From untogether + -ness.

untold

Old English

From Old English unteald (“not counted or reckoned”), from tellan (“count, relate, tell”).

untottering

Origin

From un- + tottering.

untouched

Old English

Built from un- (\"not\") plus touched, going back to Old English.

untoward

Origin

From un- (\"not\") plus toward, originally meaning heading in the wrong direction.

untraceable

Origin

From un- (\"not\") plus traceable.

untraditionally

Origin

From untraditional + -ly.

untrained

Origin

From un- (\"not\") plus trained.

untreatable

English

Formed in English from the prefix "un-" (not) plus "treatable," from the verb "treat." "Treat" entered English in the thirteenth century from Old French "traitier," from Latin "tractare," meaning to handle or manage.

untreated

Origin

From un- (\"not\") plus treated.

untrendy

Origin

From un- + trendy.

untrue

Old English

From Old English untrīewe, from un- (\"not\") plus true.

untruism

Origin

From untrue + -ism.

untrust

Origin

From Middle English untrust, untrost, untrist, likely from un- + trust. Cognate with Icelandic útraust (“untrust”). Compare also Swedish otro (“lack of faith, disbelief”).