unwitting

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   not aware of the full facts or of one's involvement in something

   The courier was an unwitting participant in the fraud.

2. 2
   adj

   done without intention or conscious purpose

   His casual remark became an unwitting insult.

From Middle English unwitting and Old English unwitende 'not knowing,' formed from un- 'not' + witting 'knowing.' Witting is related to the old verb wit 'to know,' preserved today chiefly in historical phrases and derivatives.

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