unfulfilled

adjective

un·​ful·​filled ˌən-fu̇(l)-ˈfild 

also -fə(l)-

: not fulfilled:

a

: not filled : unsatisfied, unmet

… vital unfulfilled needs of the nation …

—Harry S. Truman

b

: not carried out : not accomplished or finished

unfulfilled goals

unfulfilled shipments

c

: not converted into reality

an unfulfilled promise

d

: not having reached a point of satisfaction or happiness

… a family that includes a supportive yet equally unfulfilled wife …

—Matt Roush

Examples of unfulfilled in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The findings from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research show a president who is struggling with unfulfilled promises to tame inflation and testing Americans’ patience with a conflict in the Middle East that has dragged on longer than expected. —Josh Boak, Chicago Tribune, 21 Apr. 2026

The script’s blank spots and evasions leave the drama feeling unfulfilled and unsatisfying. —Richard Brody, New Yorker, 16 Apr. 2026

Isaac and Mulligan play Josh Martin and Lindsay Crane-Martin, the overburdened manager of the Monte Vista Port Country Club and his emotionally unfulfilled wife. —Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Apr. 2026

After more than five weeks of fighting, these objectives remain unfulfilled. —Brittney Melton, NPR, 9 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unfulfilled

• backfilled
• distilled
• fulfilled
• infilled
• instilled
• rebuild
• refilled
• unfilled
• unskilled
• untilled
• billed
• build