1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

unfounded

adjective

ˌən-ˈfau̇n-dəd How to pronounce unfounded (audio)
Definition of unfoundednext
as in unreasonable
having no basis in reason or fact the accusation proved to be unfounded

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of unfounded Yet her decision to spread unfounded theories of conspiracy fraud helped to land Fox in court. — David Folkenflik, NPR, 3 Sep. 2026 Garza wrote in her complaint that the accusations were unfounded and claimed that LeVota refused to show her the email. — Ben Wheeler, Kansas City Star, 2 Sep. 2026 Springfield, a small city in southwestern Ohio, became the center of salacious and unfounded rumors about the Haitian community during the 2024 presidential election. — Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC news, 1 Sep. 2026 Department officials closed all of the complaints for being unfounded, mirroring previous incidences where the agency classified all bias complaints in previous years as unfounded or exonerated. — Katie Langford, Denver Post, 1 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for unfounded
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unfounded
  1. unreasonable
  2. baseless
  3. groundless
  4. unsubstantiated
  5. unwarranted
Adjective
  • Accurate voter lists and lawful mail-voting options are not unreasonable demands.
    — Lee Moak, New York Daily News, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The court ultimately upheld the search warrant, finding probable cause and concluded that obtaining the data remotely was not an unreasonable search.
    — Jihun Joun, The Conversation, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of unreasonable
Adjective
  • This Sunday on 60 Minutes, Patrick Clancy talks about his grief, his memories of his children, and the baseless conspiracy theories that flooded social media since his ex-wife's murder trial.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 16 Sep. 2026
  • At Friday’s hearing, Hearn’s lawyer Levin argued to Edelman that a dismissal with prejudice was required to protect Hearn from being indicted again on baseless charges.
    — Dan Mangan, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of baseless
Adjective
  • Social media in South Korea have been filled with messages stoking fears about safety on Jeju, with some spreading groundless rumors and deriding the island.
    — Hyung-Jin Kim, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
  • For Rocha, however, the claims examined in the documentary are groundless — and tiring.
    — Johnny Dodd, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026
Definition of groundless
Adjective
  • Somehow this unsubstantiated story became internationally known with almost no major media explicitly reporting it, and before the modern version of the internet.
    — Allen Salkin, HollywoodReporter, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Some Democrats fear Trump could use those unsubstantiated assertions as a pretext to intervene in November.
    — Susan Page, USA Today, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of unsubstantiated
Adjective
  • Eritrean Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel said the sanctions were unwarranted and caused considerable damage to his country.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Last year, the panel also made several unwarranted changes to vaccine recommendations, including dropping the universal recommendation for a birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine—a move widely decried by medical and health experts.
    — Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of unwarranted

Browse Nearby Words

unfortunately
unfounded
unfree
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Unfounded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unfounded. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All