unlicensed

adjective

un·​li·​censed ˌən-ˈlī-sᵊn(t)st 

: not licensed: such as

a

: not authorized or permitted by a license

unlicensed merchandise

an unlicensed firearm

the unlicensed reproduction of books

b

: operating without a license

unlicensed vendors

an unlicensed electrician

unlicensed brokers

unlicensed drivers

Examples of unlicensed in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Some patients have died from organ failure caused by unlicensed stem cell transplantation. —Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 27 May 2026

My task is to read their unpublished, often unfinished writing—less as a teacher or as an editor than as a cheerfully unlicensed therapist. —David O’Neill, New Yorker, 20 May 2026

Records show Square was charged with leaving the scene of an accident causing death and driving while unlicensed causing death. —Dejanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 20 May 2026

For institutional balance sheets, an unlicensed or nonauditable data feed can be a nonstarter, hindering adoption. —Mike Cahill, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1577, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unlicensed

• licenced
• licensed

Medical Definition

unlicensed

adjective

un·​li·​censed

variants or chiefly British unlicenced

-ˈlīs-ᵊn(t)st

: not licensed

especially, of a drug : not approved for use by the appropriate regulating authority (as the Food and Drug Administration in the United States)