unprecedented

adjective

un·​prec·​e·​dent·​ed ˌən-ˈpre-sə-ˌden-təd 

: having no precedent : novel, unexampled

unprecedented success

unprecedentedly adverb

Synonyms of unprecedented

• novel
• new
• strange
• unfamiliar
• fresh
• unheard-of
• original

Examples of unprecedented in a Sentence

… on one occasion, a president (Eisenhower) refers to himself as "conservative." Four years later, the Republican presidential nominee (Goldwater) announces that he is "a conservative." Another sixteen years later, Ronald Reagan, a self-declared conservative, is elected president by an overwhelming majority. By that time—1980—more Americans identify themselves as conservatives than as liberals. This was, and remains, a tectonic transformation, unprecedented in American history. —John Lukacs, Harper's, March 2008

Faced with an unprecedented crisis that combines cyclical turbulence with metastasizing digital technology that steals away revenue and readers at an alarming and seemingly accelerating rate (while offering newspapers only stingy payoffs), publishers and editors everywhere have thrown away their rule books—and, to find their way in this new and alien environment, are ready to implement previously unthinkable changes. —Mark Fitzgerald et al., Editor & Publisher, August 2008

Many of the forces that initially sent the economy into a tailspin in 1929 and 1930 have been at work in the 2000s as well: a stock-market boom turned bust, a real estate boom turned bust, unprecedented levels of consumer debt. —Justin Fox, Time, 10 Mar. 2008

Shakespeare served as exemplar of the writer who achieved success, and an unprecedented degree of financial reward, from his pen alone. —Jonathan Bate, Harper's, April 2007

Fan fiction … was once mainly a fringe pursuit. Now, it's changing the world of fiction, as Internet exposure helps unknown authors find mainstream success. Some Web sites are attracting unprecedented numbers of readers and, in some cases, leading to book deals. —John Jurgensen, Wall Street Journal, 16–17 Sept. 2006

Shocking as it is, more than a month after the hurricane hit, New Orleans is still, for all practical purposes, a ghost town. The entire population has left—an unprecedented situation in modern times in any major city anywhere. —Tom Piazza, Why New Orleans Matters, 2005

The team has enjoyed unprecedented success this year.

This level of growth is unprecedented.

An unprecedented number of students are taking the class.

Recent Examples on the Web

Americans have placed an unprecedented bet on the transformative power of artificial intelligence. — Ming Lu, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026

With Gaza’s children living through an unprecedented period of isolation and terror, Shaimaa and Safaa wondered if that passion could be shared. — Literary Hub, 21 Oct. 2026

The supermarket giant warned that unprecedented unrest in France is disrupting store operations and weighing on consumer spending, already strained by rising energy costs, ahead of the crucial year-end shopping season. — Elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026

The outbreak is spreading at an unprecedented rate under some of the most challenging conditions imaginable, fueled by mass population movements, violence, mistrust and poor working conditions for frontline health workers. — Constant Same Bagalwa, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1641, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unprecedented

• disoriented
• misrepresented
• unrepresented
• assented
• augmented
• cemented
• consented
• contented
• demented
• dissented
• fermented
• indented

Kids Definition

unprecedented

adjective

un·​prec·​e·​dent·​ed ˌən-ˈpres-ə-ˌdent-əd 

ˈən-

: having no precedent : not done or experienced before

an unprecedented achievement