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unseen

adj. · n.
US //ənˈsin// UK //ʌnsˈiːn// un·seen
  1. 1 not seen or noticed (adj.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    not seen, noticed, or discovered by anyone.

    not observed, perceived, or discovered; existing or happening without being seen.

    Example

    The cameras were hidden so that the birds could live their lives unseen.

    Example

    The virus spread through the population unseen for weeks before the first patients began showing clinical symptoms.
  2. 2 unprepared exam task (n.)
    C1 Advanced British English Academic

    a piece of writing or music that you must translate or perform without seeing it before the exam.

    a passage of text, music, or other material that a student has not previously studied, provided for sight translation or analysis in an examination.

    Example

    I am nervous about the Latin unseen because the vocabulary is always difficult.

    Example

    The final examination consists of two three-hour papers, the first of which is a challenging unseen from a late-period Greek historian.

    Usage

    Often used as a countable noun in the context of classical or modern language degrees.
    • sight translation
Etymology 1

From Middle English unsen, unseyn, unseien, from Old English unġesewen, from Proto-Germanic *unsewanaz, equivalent to un- + seen. Cognate with Dutch ongezien (“unseen”), German Low German unsehn (“unseen”), German ungesehen (“unseen”).

Etymology 2

From un- + seen.

Idioms1 entry

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