as in low
belonging to the class of people of low social or economic rank
a TV producer who knew what the unwashed masses wanted—and unhesitatingly gave it to them
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in masses
people looked down upon as ignorant and of the lowest class
Aunt Edna was fond of snootily reminding us that we need not take our manners from the great unwashed
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 unwashed
Staff Reports, Florida Times-Union, 24 Mar. 2026
Use them immediately, or freeze them unwashed in a resealable plastic bag to use later.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 15 Mar. 2026
The parasite can cause severe neurological symptoms, with highest risk for those consuming raw freshwater crab, prawns, frogs, snails and unwashed produce.
—Susanne Rust
follow, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Wrap your unwashed roots in a paper towel to absorb any potential moisture, then store the carrots in a zip-top bag or airtight container in your refrigerator’s crisper drawer for up to 4 weeks.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unwashed
Adjective
Raw prep shrimp stored on shelf over unwashed produce in walk in cooler.
—Staff Reports, Florida Times-Union, 24 Mar. 2026
Use them immediately, or freeze them unwashed in a resealable plastic bag to use later.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 15 Mar. 2026
The parasite can cause severe neurological symptoms, with highest risk for those consuming raw freshwater crab, prawns, frogs, snails and unwashed produce.
—Susanne Rust
follow, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Wrap your unwashed roots in a paper towel to absorb any potential moisture, then store the carrots in a zip-top bag or airtight container in your refrigerator’s crisper drawer for up to 4 weeks.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unwashed
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unwashed
Adjective
-
This is especially important for low-income communities and others who rely heavily on the shot for contraception.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
15 May 2026
-
Not since Oakland Hills in 2008 — Jeev Milkha Singh and Robert Karlsson at 2-under 68 — has the low score to par after the first round of the PGA Championship been worse than 3 under.—
Doug Ferguson,
Chicago Tribune,
15 May 2026
Adjective
-
But the earlier dolls were crude, lumpen things, a cross between a beanbag and a sculpted potato.—
Alexandra Schwartz,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Yet Empire Falls translates into a lumpen, stodgy miniseries, despite a fine central performance from Harris as a divorced diner owner with deep roots in the town and a structure that allows the past to keep informing and enriching the present.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
14 Apr. 2024
Noun
-
In her cell, surrounded by her fellow rabble-rousing women, Deborah works the room.—
Jessica M. Goldstein,
Vulture,
1 May 2026
-
How dare the lowly rabble at Fenway Park treat our esteemed mayor and governor with such disrespect!—
Joe Battenfeld,
Boston Herald,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
My occupations have given me a happy, humble, quiet life, but always nagging in the back of my mind has been a case of impostor syndrome.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
-
Gregory Lorenzi has spent the past 10 years at Brest, where his eye for a bargain helped to catapult the humble Breton club from mid-table mediocrity in Ligue 2 to a third-place finish in Ligue 1 and a fairytale Champions League campaign.—
Tom Williams,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
People Acting Like Others When the TV series Star Trek initially gained popularity, a segment of the populace admired the tenor and nature of the Spock character.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2026
-
Assayas portrays the Russian populace as merely manipulated, as if voters were blank slates for effective propaganda rather than people with moral compasses, capacities for judgment and humanity, ideas and opinions that demagogues recognize and stoke.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
13 May 2026
Adjective
-
This one is about a regular old guy, a hedge knight in the plebeian population of Westeros, just trying to get by in a world that isn't kind to the common and poor.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
13 Jan. 2026
-
Below that sits the pedestrian CLK 500 and plebeian CLK 350.—
Jeremy Korzeniewski,
Robb Report,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Wall Street, employees and the business public greeted the choice favorably, despite the many challenges facing Disney’s new leader and all legacy media companies.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
13 May 2026
-
American and global health officials have stressed throughout the outbreak that the risk to the wider public is low and that transmission is limited to close contact.—
Rebecca Cohen,
NBC news,
12 May 2026
Adjective
-
But West Virginia is a proletarian locale that until not long ago was a Democratic stronghold.—
Mark Leibovich,
The Atlantic,
11 Feb. 2026
-
These ranged from the aristocratic elite who dominated the military and bureaucracy and yearned for a return to monarchy, to communists who sought proletarian rule, to the National Socialists who wanted to establish a right-wing dictatorship.—
Time,
Time,
23 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unwashed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unwashed. Accessed 19 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
