Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

unvarnished

/ənvˈɑɹnɪʃt/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.23 in modern English

Syllables: un-var-nished
IPA: /ənvˈɑɹnɪʃt/

18

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

3

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Not having been coated with varnish.

adj

Natural, unmodified, unembellished, not exaggerated.

Example Sentences

"unvarnished furniture"
"She told the unvarnished truth."
"There were no socialist countries or liberation movements to blame for World War I. It was a plain, unvarnished racist war for colonial empire."
"The unprofessional production of the skits, shot on handheld digital video without the assistance of a 'steady cam' device, contributes to their unvarnished allure."
"Boris Johnson the "ersatz Churchill" needed the real one to remain untouchable and unvarnished to serve his own narrative as his latter-day incarnation."

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English varnished English unvarnished From un- + varnished.

Inflected Forms

unvarnisht (alternative, archaic)

Derived Forms

unvarnishedly unvarnishedness

Frequently Paired Words

unpainted uncoated unplated unfinished

Synonyms

plain simple austere bare chaste inornate modest quiet severe spartan unadorned unembellished

Rhymes With

tarnished garnished varnished

Questions

How do you pronounce unvarnished?: The recorded pronunciation is /ənvˈɑɹnɪʃt/.
What does unvarnished mean?: Not having been coated with varnish.
Where does unvarnished come from?: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English varnished English unvarnished From un- + varnished.

How to pronounce unvarnished

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “unvarnished”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ənvˈɑɹnɪʃt/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “unvarnished”.
Repeat and practice — Say “unvarnished” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.