unprepared

adjective

un·​pre·​pared ˌən-pri-ˈperd 

: not prepared

was unprepared for class

… they were woefully unprepared to take on the responsibilities expected of them.

—Richard M. Ketchum

unpreparedness

ˌən-pri-ˈper-əd-nəs 

also -ˈperd-nəs

noun

Synonyms of unprepared

• impromptu
• improvised
• improvisational

Examples of unprepared in a Sentence

an obviously unprepared acceptance speech by the surprise winner

Recent Examples on the Web

Peter isn’t just unprepared to care for a child; the idea of children is almost alien to him. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 May 2026

In April, Anthropic’s disclosure of Mythos Preview, a model withheld from public release due to its autonomous cyber capabilities, introduced a new category of risk into a federal conversation unprepared to absorb such capabilities. —Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 15 May 2026

Looking back, Reid calls that text chain a perfect snapshot of how unprepared any of them were for the show’s response. —Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 14 May 2026

Since Bayless’ departure, Smith has often appeared unprepared and uninformed on general sports topics. —Bobby Burack Outkick, FOXNews.com, 13 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1528, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing unprepared

• catch unawares/unprepared/by surprise

Rhymes for unprepared

• aired
• bared
• blared
• caird
• cared
• chaired
• dared
• erred
• fared
• flared
• glared
• haired