Unreasonable Meaning
/ʌnˈɹiːz.(ə)nə.bl̩/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjWithout the ability to reason; unreasoning.
adjNot reasonable; going beyond what could be expected or asked for.
Sentence Examples
Your demands are unreasonable.
The salesman sold the article at an unreasonable price.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
The manager's ____ request that everyone work extra hours without pay was unfair.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The manager's request was seen as ____, as he asked the team to work throughout the entire holiday weekend today.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English unresonable, equivalent to un- + reasonable, originally partly after Latin irratiōnābilis.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Hold thy desperate hand:
Art thou a man? thy form cries out thou art:
Thy tears are womanish; thy wild acts denote
The unreasonable fury of a beast:
Unseemly woman in a seeming man!"
— c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iii]:
"For it seemeth to me vnreasonable, to send a prisoner, and not withall to signifie the crimes laid against him."
— 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 25:27:
"The will of those who never allow their will to be disputed, unless they happen to be in a good humour, when they relax proportionally, is almost always unreasonable."
— 1791 (date written), Mary Wollstonecraft, “Duty to Parents”, in A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: With Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects, London: […] J[oseph] Johnson, […], published 1792, →OCLC, page 358:
"The groups claimed the administration’s planned operations targeted the city for its sanctuary status and amount to a violation of their First Amendment right to free speech and Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure, according to the court filing ."
— 2025 January 26, Priscilla Alvarez, Rosa Flores, “Trump administration launches nationwide immigration enforcement blitz”, in CNN, archived from the original on 09 Mar 2025:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The manager's ____ request that everyone work extra hours without pay was unfair.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The manager's request was seen as ____, as he asked the team to work throughout the entire holiday weekend today.