nameless

adjective

name·​less ˈnām-ləs 

1

: obscure, undistinguished

2

: not known by name : anonymous

3

: having no legal right to a name (as due to being born to parents not married to each other)

4

: not having been given a name : unnamed

5

: not marked with a name

a nameless grave

6

a

: incapable of precise description : indefinable

b

: too repulsive or distressing to describe

namelessly adverb

namelessness noun

Synonyms of nameless

• unnamed
• unidentified
• anonymous

Examples of nameless in a Sentence

She left the hotel with a nameless man in a black jacket.

The source for my story prefers to remain nameless.

A top government official, who shall remain nameless, has expressed concern about the decision.

The men were buried there in nameless graves.

Recent Examples on the Web

Their feelings are murky and nameless. —The New Yorker, New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2026

There may be a creative ceiling to watching scores of nameless inmates get inventively eviscerated, but thanks to its 11-minute segments, the ultraviolent comedy flies by. —Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2026

The notorious Golden State Killer, Joseph DeAngelo, was busted, due in large part to investigative genetic genealogy, a modern detective tool that helps police identify nameless victims and suspects by first identifying their relatives. —Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2026

The real threat to Americans is our headlong rush toward normalizing blatant murder, whether that be of nameless occupants of motorboats in the Caribbean, schoolgirls in Iran or United States citizens in the streets of Minneapolis. —Chicago Tribune, 10 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for nameless

• aimless
• blameless
• shameless

Kids Definition

nameless

adjective

name·​less ˈnām-ləs 

1

: having no name

2

: not marked with a name

a nameless grave

3

: unknown entry 1, anonymous

a nameless hero

4

a

: impossible to describe

nameless fears

b

: too disgusting or disturbing to be described

nameless acts of cruelty