Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

1 ADJ An unmusical sound is unpleasant to listen to. □  Lainey had a terrible voice, unmusical and sharp.

2 ADJ An unmusical person cannot play or appreciate music. □  They're completely unmusical.

un|named /ʌ nne I md/

1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] Unnamed people or things are talked about but their names are not mentioned. □  An unnamed man collapsed and died while he was walking near Dundonald. □  The cash comes from an unnamed source.

2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] Unnamed things have not been given a name. □  …unnamed comets and asteroids.

un|natu|ral /ʌnnæ tʃər ^ə l/

1 ADJ If you describe something as unnatural , you mean that it is strange and often frightening, because it is different from what you normally expect. □  The aircraft rose with unnatural speed on take-off. □  The altered landscape looks unnatural and weird. ●  un|natu|ral|ly ADV [ADV adj] □  The house was unnaturally silent. □  …unnaturally cold conditions.

2 ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] Behaviour that is unnatural seems artificial and not normal or genuine. □  She gave him a bright, determined smile which seemed unnatural. ●  un|natu|ral|ly ADV [ADV with v] □  Try to avoid shouting or speaking unnaturally.

un|natu|ral|ly /ʌnnæ tʃərəli/

1 PHRASE You can use not unnaturally to indicate that the situation you are describing is exactly as you would expect in the circumstances. □  It was a question that Roy not unnaturally found impossible to answer.

2 → see also unnatural

un|nec|es|sary /ʌnne səsri, [AM ] -seri/ ADJ If you describe something as unnecessary , you mean that it is not needed or does not have to be done, and is undesirable. □  The slaughter of whales is unnecessary and inhuman. □  He accused Diana of making an unnecessary fuss. ●  un|nec|es|sari|ly /ʌ nnesəse r I li/ ADV [ADV with v, ADV adj] □  I didn't want to upset my daughter unnecessarily. □  A bad keyboard can make life unnecessarily difficult.

un|nerve /ʌ nnɜː ^r v/ (unnerves , unnerving , unnerved ) VERB If you say that something unnerves you, you mean that it worries or troubles you. □ [V n] The news about Dermot had unnerved me.

un|nerv|ing /ʌ nnɜː ^r v I ŋ/ ADJ If you describe something as unnerving , you mean that it makes you feel worried or uncomfortable. □  It must have been unnerving to see money disappearing from your account.

un|no|ticed /ʌ nnoʊ t I st/ ADJ [usu ADJ after v, oft v-link ADJ , ADJ n] If something happens or passes unnoticed , it is not seen or noticed by anyone. □  I tried to slip up the stairs unnoticed. □ [+ by ] Her forty-fourth birthday had just passed, unnoticed by all but herself.

un|ob|served /ʌ nəbzɜː ^r vd/ ADJ [v-link ADJ , ADJ after v, ADJ n] If you do something unobserved , you do it without being seen by other people. □  Looking round to make sure he was unobserved, he slipped through the door. □  John had been sitting, unobserved, in the darkness.

un|ob|tain|able /ʌ nəbte I nəb ^ə l/ ADJ If something or someone is unobtainable , you cannot get them. □  Fish was unobtainable in certain sections of Tokyo.

un|ob|tru|sive /ʌ nəbtruː s I v/ ADJ If you describe something or someone as unobtrusive , you mean that they are not easily noticed or do not draw attention to themselves. [FORMAL ] □  The coffee table is glass, to be as unobtrusive as possible. ●  un|ob|tru|sive|ly ADV [usu ADV with v] □  They slipped away unobtrusively.