Adjacent Words

Unless definitions

	Tweet

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

UNLESS', conj.
Except; that is, remove or dismiss the fact or thing stated in the sentence or clause which follows. "We cannot thrive unless we are industrious and frugal." the sense will be more obvious with the clauses of the sentence inverted. Unless, [remove this fact, suppose it not to exist,] we are industrious and frugal, we cannot thrive. Unless then answers for a negation. If we are not industrious, we cannot thrive.

Merriam Webster's

I. conjunction Etymology: Middle English unlesse, alteration of onlesse, from on + lesse less Date: 14th century 1. except on the condition that ; under any other circumstance than 2. without the accompanying circumstance or condition that ; but that ; but II. preposition Date: circa 1532 except possibly ; except

Oxford Reference Dictionary

conj. if not; except when (shall go unless I hear from you; always walked unless I had a bicycle). Etymology: ON or IN + LESS, assim. to UN-(1)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Unless Un*less", conj. [Formerly, onles, onlesse, onlesse that, that is, in less, in a less case. See On, and Less.] Upon any less condition than (the fact or thing stated in the sentence or clause which follows); if not; supposing that not; if it be not; were it not that; except; as, we shall fail unless we are industrious. Note: By the omission of the verb in the dependent clause, unless was frequently used prepositionally, -- a construction common in Shakespeare and still employed colloquially. Here nothing breeds unless the nightly owl. --Shak.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. You use unless to introduce the only circumstances in which an event you are mentioning will not take place or in which a statement you are making is not true. Unless you are trying to lose weight to please yourself, it's going to be tough to keep your motivation level high... We cannot understand disease unless we understand the person who has the disease... CONJ

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

conj. Except, if not, supposing that not.

Moby Thesaurus

aside from, bar, barring, beside, besides, but, ex, except, except for, except that, excepting, excluding, exclusive of, if not, leaving out, let alone, omitting, outside of, precluding, save, save and except, saving, than, unless that, were it not, without