Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

un|oc|cu|pied /ʌ nɒ kjʊpa I d/ ADJ [v-link ADJ , ADJ n, ADJ after v] If a building is unoccupied , there is nobody in it. □  The house was unoccupied at the time of the explosion. □  The fire broke out in two unoccupied cabins.

un|of|fi|cial /ʌ nəf I ʃ ^ə l/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] An unofficial action or statement is not organized or approved by a person or group in authority. □  Staff voted to continue an unofficial strike. □  Official reports put the death toll at under one hundred. ●  un|of|fi|cial|ly ADV [usu ADV with v] □  Some workers are legally employed, but the majority work unofficially.

un|opened /ʌ noʊ pənd/ ADJ [ADJ n, v-link ADJ , ADJ after v] If something is unopened , it has not been opened yet. □  …unopened bottles of olive oil. □  The letter lay unopened in the travel firm's pigeonhole. □  Catherine put all the envelopes aside unopened.

un|op|posed /ʌ nəpoʊ zd/ ADJ [usu ADJ after v, oft v-link ADJ , ADJ n] In something such as an election or a war, if someone is unopposed , there are no opponents competing or fighting against them. □  The council re-elected him unopposed as party leader.

un|ortho|dox /ʌ nɔː ^r θədɒks/

1 ADJ If you describe someone's behaviour, beliefs, or customs as unorthodox , you mean that they are different from what is generally accepted. □  She spent an unorthodox girlhood travelling with her father throughout Europe. □  His methods were unorthodox, and his lifestyle eccentric.

2 ADJ If you describe ways of doing things as unorthodox , you are criticizing them because they are unusual or illegal. [DISAPPROVAL ] □  Journalists appear to have obtained confidential documents in an unorthodox manner.

un|pack /ʌ npæ k/ (unpacks , unpacking , unpacked )

1 VERB When you unpack a suitcase, box, or similar container, or you unpack the things inside it, you take the things out of the container. □ [V n] He unpacked his bag. [Also V ]

2 VERB If you unpack an idea or problem, you analyse it and consider it in detail. □ [V n] Let's unpack this model a bit more and see just how "illogical" it really is.

un|paid /ʌ npe I d/

1 ADJ [ADJ n] If you do unpaid work or are an unpaid worker, you do a job without receiving any money for it. □  Even unpaid work for charity is better than nothing. □  The unpaid volunteers do the work because they love it.

2 ADJ Unpaid taxes or bills, for example, are bills or taxes which have not been paid yet. □  The taxman caught up with him and demanded £17,000 in unpaid taxes. □  The bills remained unpaid because of a dispute over the quality of the company's work.

un|pal|at|able /ʌnpæ l I təb ^ə l/

1 ADJ If you describe an idea as unpalatable , you mean that you find it unpleasant and difficult to accept. □  It is an unpalatable fact that rape makes a good news story. □  It was only then that I began to learn the unpalatable truth about John.

2 ADJ If you describe food as unpalatable , you mean that it is so unpleasant that you can hardly eat it. □  …a lump of dry, unpalatable cheese.

un|par|al|leled /ʌnpæ rəleld/ ADJ If you describe something as unparalleled , you are emphasizing that it is, for example, bigger, better, or worse than anything else of its kind, or anything that has happened before. [EMPHASIS ] □  Germany's unparalleled prosperity is based on wise investments. □ [+ since ] The country is facing a crisis unparalleled since the Second World War. [Also + in ]