unwitting
adjective
un·wit·ting
ˌən-ˈwi-tiŋ 
1
: not knowing : unaware
kept the truth from their unwitting friends
2
: not intended : inadvertent
an unwitting mistake
Examples of unwitting in a Sentence
He kept the truth from his unwitting friends.
an unwitting victim of fraud
Recent Examples on the Web
But please spare both the niece and the unwitting nephew a lecture.
—
Judith Martin, Mercury News, 20 Dec. 2025
This refers to malicious actors impersonating a legitimate software package or extension to trick an unwitting coder—or now, an AI—into downloading a malicious one instead, usually by slightly tweaking the name and legitimizing it with fake reviews.
—Sage Lazzaro, Fortune, 15 Dec. 2025
What’s spoken to me most are the stories in which the struggle against oppression is something ongoing, involving unwitting enlistees and imperfect allies, and passed along to younger generations as the older ones are lost to exhaustion, disillusionment, or darker fates.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Dec. 2025
This exciting Halloween adventure sees an unwitting babysitter (Tamara Smart) recruited to a secret society of monster-fighting teens.
—Emy Lacroix, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unwitting
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Judith Martin, Mercury News, 20 Dec. 2025
This refers to malicious actors impersonating a legitimate software package or extension to trick an unwitting coder—or now, an AI—into downloading a malicious one instead, usually by slightly tweaking the name and legitimizing it with fake reviews.
—Sage Lazzaro, Fortune, 15 Dec. 2025
What’s spoken to me most are the stories in which the struggle against oppression is something ongoing, involving unwitting enlistees and imperfect allies, and passed along to younger generations as the older ones are lost to exhaustion, disillusionment, or darker fates.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Dec. 2025
This exciting Halloween adventure sees an unwitting babysitter (Tamara Smart) recruited to a secret society of monster-fighting teens.
—Emy Lacroix, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unwitting
Cite this Entry
“Unwitting.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unwitting. Accessed 2 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
unwitting
adjective
un·wit·ting
ˌən-ˈwit-iŋ
ˈən-
1
: not intended : inadvertent
an unwitting mistake
2
: not knowing : unaware
unwittingly
adverb
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