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unwitting

[uhn-wit-ing]

Origin

adjective

inadvertent; unintentional; accidental: His insult, though unwitting, pained her.

not knowing; unaware; ignorant; oblivious; unconscious: an unwitting person.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English; Old English unwittende; see un-¹, wit², -ing²

Related forms

un·wit·ting·ly, adverb

un·wit·ting·ness, noun

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Unwitting is always a great word to know.

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the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.

an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.

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Dictionary.com Unabridged

verb (used with object), un·wit·ted, un·wit·ting.

Obsolete. to render devoid of wit; derange.

Origin:
1595–1605; un-² + wit¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To unwitting

Collins

World English Dictionary

unwitting (ʌnˈwɪtɪŋ)

—*adj*
1.	not knowing or conscious
2.	not intentional; inadvertent

[Old English unwitende, from un-¹ + witting, present participle of witan to know; related to Old High German wizzan to know, Old Norse vita]

un'wittingly

—*adv*

un'wittingness

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

unwitting

O.E. unwitende, from un- (1) "not" + witting (see wit). Cf. O.H.G. unwizzanti, Ger. unwissend, O.N. uvitandi, Goth. unwitands. Rare after c.1600; revived c.1800.

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-Walt Whitman

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