unkempt

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ʌnˈkɛmpt/ UK /ʌnˈkɛmpt/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
untidy or disheveled in appearance

His unkempt hair suggested a sleepless night.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · untidy or disheveled in... disheveleduntidy messytousledbedraggledscruffyslovenly

Opposites

kempttidy neat groomedwell-kept

Word family

Related forms kemptcombunkemptness

Simplified etymology

Unkempt preserves the old verb kemb, used where comb is now used. Kemb was eventually replaced by the related Old English word comb, but unkempt survived and changed from meaning “uncombed” to meaning generally “untidy” or “dishevelled.”

Etymology

From un- ('not') + kempt, archaic past participle of kemb ('to comb'), from Old English cemban ('to comb'), from camb ('comb').

un- Old English cemban Old English *kambaz Proto-Germanic *ǵómbʰos Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# unkempt

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ʌnˈkɛmpt/
**IPA (UK):** /ʌnˈkɛmpt/

## Meanings
1. untidy or disheveled in appearance

## Examples
- His unkempt hair suggested a sleepless night.

## Synonyms
- disheveled
- untidy
- messy
- tousled
- bedraggled
- scruffy
- slovenly

## Antonyms
- kempt
- tidy
- neat
- groomed
- well-kept

## Related Forms
- kempt
- comb
- unkemptness

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: un-
- Root: cemban
- Root: *kambaz
- Root: *ǵómbʰos

## Etymology
From un- ('not') + kempt, archaic past participle of kemb ('to comb'), from Old English cemban ('to comb'), from camb ('comb').

## AI Etymology
Unkempt is from un- ('not') + kempt, archaic past participle of kemb ('to comb'), from Old English cemban ('to comb'), from camb ('comb'). Important recorded forms include un- (Old English), cemban (Old English), *kambaz (Proto-Germanic), and *ǵómbʰos (Proto-Indo-European). Morphologically, the un- element marks negation, reversal, removal, or deprivation, while the base supplies the action, quality, or state being denied or undone. The modern sense continues the older lexical line without requiring a separate origin. In current use it covers untidy or disheveled in appearance. The wider family includes related words such as kempt, comb, and unkemptness.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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