unwritten

adjective

un·​writ·​ten ˌən-ˈri-tᵊn 

1

: not expressed in writing : oral, traditional

an unwritten rule

2

: containing no writing : blank

Synonyms of unwritten

• oral
• verbal
• spoken

Examples of unwritten in a Sentence

They had an unwritten agreement.

an unwritten contract may not be enforceable

Recent Examples on the Web

Only then will the Leningrad courtyard, with its unwritten rules, cease to be big enough for the both of them. —Andrew Ryvkin, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2025

The team that, instead of trying to make waves in the winter in desperate bits for your third-party attention, goes and ruins your spring, summer, and fall by breaking every unwritten rule and smiling the whole time. —Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 4 Dec. 2025

The mandate by India also upsets the unwritten détente between the makers of smartphone operating systems and law enforcement agencies around the world. —Rachyl Jones, semafor.com, 3 Dec. 2025

Unimaginable what might have gone unwritten absent a regular home for her poems, a destination—a word that meant the world to this homeless soul. —Jorie Graham, New Yorker, 30 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing unwritten

• unwritten constitution
• unwritten law
• unwritten/unspoken rule

Rhymes for unwritten

• handwritten
• rewritten
• typewritten
• bitten
• briton
• chiton
• gittin
• kitten
• mitten
• smitten
• whitten
• written

Kids Definition

unwritten

adjective

un·​writ·​ten ˌən-ˈrit-ᵊn 

ˈən-

1

: not put in writing : oral, traditional

an unwritten law

2

: containing no writing : blank

unwritten pages