unavailable

adjective

un·​avail·​able ˌən-ə-ˈvā-lə-bəl 

: not available: such as

a

: not possible to get or use

a book that is currently unavailable online

The conference room is unavailable this afternoon.

b

: unable or unwilling to do something

—often followed by for or by to + a verb

Officials were unavailable for comment.

The manager is unavailable to speak with you right now.

unavailability

ˌən-ə-ˌvā-lə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

Synonyms of unavailable

• inaccessible

Examples of unavailable in a Sentence

the commander is unavailable right now

Recent Examples on the Web

His team’s games remained unavailable to viewers in China Wednesday. — ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026

Even telephone services remained unavailable in many Soviet cities until the 1990s. — The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 28 Oct. 2026

Letters could sustain relationships between people separated by oceans, and sometimes those relationships achieved an intimacy unavailable to people who occupied the same rooms. — Philip Martin, Arkansas Online, 27 Oct. 2026

Only two decades ago, my family looked West for a treatment for my grandmother that was unavailable in China. — Ruby Wang, semafor.com, 27 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1855, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unavailable

• available
• unsalable
• bailable
• mailable
• salable
• saleable
• scalable
• bioavailable
• unassailable