unclaimed

adjective un·claimed \ ˌən-ˈklāmd \

|Updated on: 4 Jul 2018

Definition of unclaimed

: not claimed; specifically : not called for by an owner or consignee

unclaimed property/goods

See unclaimed defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of unclaimed from the Web

Those unclaimed royalties are to be distributed to all member publishers based on market share.

— anne steele, WSJ, "Updated Music-Copyright Law Clears Senate Panel," 28 June 2018
Years ago, when the city moved its cemeteries to Colma, unclaimed headstones were put to other use.

— thomas graham, SFChronicle.com, "Walking these seven hills of San Francisco a peak experience," 28 June 2018
The Jackpot Slots Fast Cash ticket instantly won a $519,456 progressive jackpot prize last year and has gone unclaimed for 11 months, according to the Michigan Lottery.

— tanya wildt, Detroit Free Press, "Deadline nears to claim $500,000 lotto ticket sold in Detroit," 27 June 2018
Whoever biked to the bakery earned the bonus, though, after the first 12 doughnuts, the prize often went unclaimed.

— leah eskin, chicagotribune.com, "Mushrooms meet sherry and cream for a memorable toast topping," 30 May 2018
Despite rushing for nearly 3,100 yards and 36 touchdowns at the University of Wisconsin, Clement went unclaimed in the 2017 draft and signed with the hometown Eagles.

— paul domowitch, Philly.com, "Corey Clement, one year after his meteoric rise, is ready to grow his role with Eagles," 24 May 2018
All the while, New York continued ferrying bodies there that went unclaimed at the city morgue.

— Washington Post, "Erosion unearthing bones on New York’s island of the dead," 3 May 2018
According to the Reds Community Fund, only three prizes from the 2017 season went unclaimed, a total of $12,511.

— cameron knight, Cincinnati.com, "Stop tearing through your trash bags! The Opening Day split the pot winner has been found.," 2 Apr. 2018
Black, Milton and the other veterans were among 200 sets of unclaimed remains in the courthouse in Amarillo.

— sig christenson, San Antonio Express-News, "Unclaimed by families, 8 veterans get final salute at Fort Sam," 1 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'unclaimed.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of unclaimed

circa 1616

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up unclaimed? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

unclaimed

Definition of unclaimed

Recent Examples of unclaimed from the Web

First Known Use of unclaimed

Seen and Heard

WORD OF THE DAY

vouchsafe

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Test Your Vocabulary

Words at Play

Is 'Consensus of Opinion' Redundant?

The Good, The Bad, & The Semantically Imprecise - 7/13

Is There a Difference Between ‘Long’ and ‘Lengthy?’

Add These Rare and Uncommon Words to Your Vocabulary Now!

Ask the Editors

Ghost Word

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Literally

Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice?

Word Games

Obscure Shapes

Who Knew?

True or False?

Word Winder's CrossWinder

Is 'Consensus of Opinion' Redundant?

Obscure Shapes

Wonderful Words That You're Not Using (Yet)

Trending: Ocasio-Cortez Sparks 'Socialism' Lookups

Ghost Word

unclaimed

Definition of unclaimed

Recent Examples of unclaimed from the Web

First Known Use of unclaimed

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

Is 'Consensus of Opinion' Redundant?

Obscure Shapes

Wonderful Words That You're Not Using (Yet)

Trending: Ocasio-Cortez Sparks 'Socialism' Lookups

Ghost Word