unfamiliar

1 of 2

adjective

un·​fa·​mil·​iar ˌən-fə-ˈmil-yər 

: not familiar:

a

: not well-known : strange

an unfamiliar place

—often used with to

used words that were unfamiliar to me

b

: not well acquainted

unfamiliar with the subject

unfamiliarity

ˌən-fə-ˌmil-ˈyer-ə-tē 

-ˌmi-lē-ˈyer-, 

-ˈya-rə-

noun

unfamiliarly

ˌən-fə-ˈmil-yər-lē 

adverb

unfamiliarity

2 of 2

noun

un·​familiarity "+ 

: the quality or state of being unfamiliar : strangeness, novelty

his unfamiliarity with this quarter of the city

an unfamiliarity with the new rules slowed down his play

the unfamiliarity of the scene

Synonyms of unfamiliar

Adjective

• strange
• new
• novel
• unprecedented
• fresh
• original
• unknown

Examples of unfamiliar in a Sentence

Adjective

He gets nervous when he is in unfamiliar surroundings.

The book is full of unfamiliar words.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Nicastro also placed cats in unfamiliar environments, hoping to get meows of dissatisfaction. — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026

That’s not to say there isn’t opportunity — Netflix and Amazon spent about $40 billion combined on video and music content last year — but the degree of difficulty, especially for the sports stars dabbling in unfamiliar territory, has intensified. — Justin Birnbaum, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2026

Moments like this reflected how unfamiliar many emerging employee protections were at the time. — Matt Emma, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026

For Chan, the process of working with a designer was unfamiliar—and daunting. — Sophia Herring, Architectural Digest, 9 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

unfamiliar + -ity

First Known Use

Adjective

1594, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing unfamiliar

• unfamiliar with (something)

Rhymes for unfamiliar

• conciliar
• familiar

Kids Definition

unfamiliar

adjective

un·​fa·​mil·​iar ˌən-fə-ˈmil-yər 

1

: not well-known : strange

an unfamiliar place

2

: not well acquainted

unfamiliar with the subject

unfamiliarity

-ˌmil-ˈyar-ət-ē 

-ˌmil-ē-ˈ(y)ar-

noun