unanswered

unanswered — adjective

1. A question, message, or request that is unanswered has received no response. A p

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

A question, message, or request that is unanswered has received no response. A problem or doubt that remains unanswered has not been solved or explained.

Example

Bilal's email to the university admissions office remained unanswered for three weeks.

remain unanswered — no reply after time passes

Several key questions from the audience went unanswered after the speaker finished her talk.

go unanswered — questions not addressed

Common collocations
  • question goes unanswered
  • letter remains unanswered
  • unanswered call
  • unanswered prayer
  • unanswered question
  • leave something unanswered
Synonyms
  • unresolved

    Stronger focus on problems or mysteries that have not been settled, often implying ongoing tension or lack of closure

  • unreplied

    Specific to written correspondence; much less common in everyday speech than unanswered

  • unreturned

    Used mainly for phone calls or favours that have not been reciprocated

Antonyms
  • answered

    Direct opposite — has received a response or solution

  • resolved

    Describes a problem or mystery that has been explained or settled

Grammar Patterns

remain + unanswered

go + unanswered

leave + noun + unanswered

Usage Note

Frequently used in passive-like constructions such as remain unanswered, go unanswered, and leave something unanswered, rather than purely as an attributive adjective before a noun. The subject is typically something that expects or requires a response — a question, email, phone call, prayer, or request.

Common Mistakes

He unanswered my question.
My question went unanswered.' / 'He did not answer my question.
Unanswered is an adjective, not the past-tense form of a verb.

2. In sports, describes points, goals, or runs that a team or player scores consecu

2.adjectiveB2
Definition

In sports, describes points, goals, or runs that a team or player scores consecutively while the opponent does not score at all during that same stretch of play.

Example

The visiting team scored eighteen unanswered points in the second half and cruised to victory.

unanswered points — consecutive scoring while opponent scores none

Vinícius hit three unanswered home runs, turning a close match into a one-sided victory.

Common collocations
  • unanswered points
  • unanswered goals
  • unanswered runs
  • score unanswered points
  • give up unanswered goals
Synonyms
  • consecutive

    Simply means one after another, without the additional meaning that the opponent scored nothing in reply

Antonyms
  • answered

    In sports commentary, describes a score by the opposing side that comes in reply (e.g., an answered goal)

Grammar Patterns

unanswered + points / goals / runs

Usage Note

Only used for a sequence of scoring — never for a single goal or point. The modifier always appears before the total (e.g., ten unanswered points, not points that were unanswered). Can describe either the scoring team (scored X unanswered points) or the conceding team (gave up X unanswered points).

Word family

  • answer
    verbA1
  • answer
    nounA1
  • answerable
    adjectiveC1
  • unanswerable
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Unanswered, unresolved, unreplied, and unreturned all describe the absence of a response, but they fit different contexts. Unanswered is the broadest term — it works for questions, letters, phone calls, prayers, and mysteries alike. Unresolved is more specific to problems, disputes, or mysteries that remain unsettled after investigation or discussion; it carries a sense of ongoing tension or incomplete closure. Unreplied applies almost exclusively to written correspondence (letters, emails, messages) and is far less common than unanswered in everyday speech. Unreturned refers to phone calls or favours that have not been reciprocated — your phone log may show an 'unreturned call.' Compare: 'The committee left his question unanswered' (no reply was given) versus 'The dispute remains unresolved' (the underlying issue is still open).

unanswered ↗unresolvedunrepliedunreturned

Common collocations

Adverbs

  • still unanswered
  • yet unanswered

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

Formed in English by adding the prefix un- (meaning 'not') to answered, the past participle of the verb answer. Answer comes from Old English andswarian, meaning 'to make a statement in reply to a question or charge,' which itself is built from and- ('against') and swerian ('to swear'). Over centuries, the original legal sense of swearing a reply broadened into the general meaning of responding to any question, argument, or request.