unwarranted

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adjective un·war·rant·ed \ ˌən-ˈwȯr-ən-təd , -ˈwär- \

Definition of unwarranted

:lacking adequate or official support :not warranted :unjustified

unwarranted fears

an unwarranted intrusion

Their criticism is unwarranted.

See unwarranted defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of unwarranted from the Web

A federal appeals court has upheld a decision mandating that Icon Health and Fitness pay $1.6 million in attorney's fees for filing an unwarranted patent lawsuit against a competitor.

— joe mullin, Ars Technica, "Fitness company that took its patent case to Supreme Court gets $1.6M fee award," 28 Aug. 2017
To short-circuit the standard procedure is to consciously avoid facts that might show that clemency is unwarranted.

— the editors, National Review, "A Bad Pardon," 28 Aug. 2017
Zinke tells the AP that criticisms are unwarranted and that conservationists worried that the administration wants to sell off the land removed from the monuments to timber, grazing and mining interests are overreacting.

— jason daley, Smithsonian, "National Monuments Review Suggests “Handful” of Boundary Changes," 25 Aug. 2017
This can take the form of sexist jokes or unwarranted concern.

— suzannah weiss, Glamour, "Woman Sues Former Employer for Firing Her Over a Heavy Period," 18 Aug. 2017
Senators introduced two bills last week intended to block an unwarranted Mueller dismissal.

— peter grier, The Christian Science Monitor, "Can Congress keep Robert Mueller from being fired?," 8 Aug. 2017
Any speculation that Otter may have to step down due to health reasons remains unwarranted, Hanian said.

— cynthia sewell, idahostatesman, "Recovery from surgery, ‘vigorous’ infection sidelines Gov. Otter for nearly 1 month," 4 Aug. 2017
Of course, that doesn't mean concern is unwarranted—this is just the nature of the beast, when the beast in question is the biggest movie franchise in the world.

— joshua rivera, GQ, "Star Wars: Episode IX," 2 Aug. 2017
Black males face daily misperceptions and harassment, which increases the likelihood of them one day having an unwarranted deadly encounter.

— depelsha mcgruder, The Root, "From Fear to Fortitude: One Woman’s Fight for Black Boys a Year Later," 7 July 2017

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

First Known Use of unwarranted

1577

unwarranted Synonyms

Synonyms

dispensable, gratuitous, inessential, needless, nonessential, uncalled-for, unessential, unnecessary

Antonyms

essential, indispensable, necessary, needed, needful, required

Related Words

discretionary, elective, optional; extra, extraneous, irrelative, irrelevant, redundant, superfluous

Near Antonyms

all-important, crucial, important, vital; imperative, pressing, urgent

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