# unavailable

/ˌənəˈveɪɫəbəɫ/ (US) · /ʌnɐvˈeɪləbəl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/unavailable
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. not obtainable

adjective · CEFR B1

not able to be bought, used, or found.

For teachers: not able to be obtained, purchased, or utilised at the present time.

- The book I wanted was unavailable at the local library.
- The specific replacement parts for the vintage engine are currently unavailable due to a global supply chain disruption.

### 2. busy or occupied

adjective · CEFR B1

too busy to talk to someone or do something.

For teachers: not free to be consulted or contacted; occupied with other duties.

- The manager is unavailable for a meeting until tomorrow morning.
- The lead surgeon remains unavailable for comment while the post-operative assessment is still in progress.

### 3. ineffective

adjective · CEFR C2 · Archaic

not producing the result you want.

For teachers: producing no effect; useless or unavailing.

- Their efforts to fix the old machine proved unavailable in the end.
- The traditional remedies were found to be unavailable against the virulent new strain of the virus.

Teaching tip: This sense is archaic; modern speakers almost exclusively use 'ineffective' or 'useless' instead.

## Examples

- The manager is unavailable for a meeting today.
- I tried to book a room for the weekend, but the website said all suites were unavailable.
- Due to a sudden server failure, the digital archives remained unavailable to researchers for several days while the IT department worked to restore the backup data.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.