unknown quantity

noun

: someone or something whose abilities or characteristics are not yet known

If you've never been published before, you're an unknown quantity, so you're going to have difficulty selling your first novel.

Examples of unknown quantity in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Independence Day star turning down 1999’s The Matrix is actually pretty understandable, as writers-directors The Wachowskis were still an unknown quantity at the time. —James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2025

An unknown quantity is what might happen if other clubs attempt to poach Newcastle’s truly game-changing players, such as Alexander Isak. —George Caulkin, New York Times, 2 May 2025

Club icon Jurgen Klopp departed as manager in the summer after almost nine years with Liverpool and his replacement, Slot, had an impressive track record in his native Netherlands but was an unknown quantity in English football. —Andy Jones, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2025

The suspects then allegedly stole an unknown quantity of Apple electronics from the truck and fled in two vehicles, according to state police. —Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 25 Mar. 2025

This set off a series of large explosions and a huge plume of black smoke, while a still unknown quantity of jet fuel has spilled into the sea. —Lauren Lowman, WIRED, 15 Mar. 2025

Instead of Jimmy Kimmel, a memorable host in the recent past with a keen appreciation for puncturing pretensions, there is Conan O’Brien who, while familiar, remains an unknown quantity in how politically barbed his opening monologue might be. —Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 25 Feb. 2025

Katrina Bergman, president of the center, told the Patriot Ledger that an unknown quantity of what is suspected to be heating oil was released to the river. —Jessica Trufant, USA TODAY, 9 Dec. 2024

But for all the controversy surrounding the nomination, Kennedy remains an unknown quantity to many senators. —Peter Sullivan, Axios, 5 Dec. 2024