adjective [ADJECTIVE noun, verb-link ADJECTIVE, ADJECTIVE after verb]
If you describe something such as a work of art or a piece of work as unfinished, you mean that it is not complete, for example because it was abandoned or there was no time to complete it.
...Jane Austen's unfinished novel.
The cathedral was eventually completed in 1490, though the Gothic facade remainsunfinished.
He left the sentence unfinished.
Synonyms: incomplete, uncompleted, half-done, lacking More Synonyms of unfinished
More Synonyms of unfinished
unfinished in British English
(ʌnˈfɪnɪʃt)
adjective
1.
incomplete or imperfect
2.
(of paint, polish, varnish, etc) without an applied finish; rough
3.
(of fabric) unbleached or not processed
4.
(of fabric) with a short nap
unfinished in American English
(ʌnˈfɪnɪʃt)
adjective
1.
not finished; not completed or perfected; incomplete
2.
having no finish, or final coat, as of paint
3.
not processed after looming, as woolen cloth
Examples of 'unfinished' in a sentence
unfinished
The Mass survives as one of the great unfinished works.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
No sense of unfinished business, then?
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
It is unfinished business and a long-term project.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
As time has passed, it feels as though there is unfinished business here.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
It is why the midfielder always felt he had unfinished business on Teesside and knew he would be back one day.
The Sun (2016)
Before giving 2016 a hearty kick into the past tense, we have unfinished business.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
I think it's unfinished business.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
At first he resisted, telling the scores of middlemen surrounding the deal that he had unfinished business with Chelsea.
The Sun (2017)
He spoke without a script, often rambling, leaving sentences unfinished in a stream of consciousness that often got him into trouble.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
We have some unfinished business to conclude.
Iain Gale Man of Honour (2007)
The sentence is left unfinished but the implication is clear.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Or any number of other famous unfinished works.
Christianity Today (2000)
There is unfinished business and a feeling to put things right.
The Sun (2011)
That unfinished sentence hangs in the air.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Much of the unfinished work includes tracking down agents.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
At this stage of my career there is unfinished business.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Our team still has unfinished business.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
There is one piece of intriguing unfinished business here, too.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
This will ensure that you do not send unfinished work or lose well-crafted paragraphs.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
Going home to unfinished business is a well-trodden and predictable film journey.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Before we change humanity, we have the unfinished business of the earth to attend to.
Oliver Morton Eating the Sun: How Plants Power the Planet (2007)
I have unfinished business with this car.
The Sun (2015)
Upon her death, he is bequeathed her unfinished work and is left with the question of how to proceed.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
And the humanity of something unfinished I find really exciting.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Compare this with canvases that, at the time, felt unfinished to the public.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Of course, this is unfinished work: neither picture was intended for display.
The Times Literary Supplement (2011)
While sympathetic towards his future employers, there is unfinished business with his home-town club.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
It's soon clear he has unfinished business with Rachel.
The Sun (2006)
He said: 'There is some unfinished business.
The Sun (2014)
I have unfinished business in ODIs.
The Sun (2012)
They said Spanish giants Real would be back to sort out unfinished business at the end of this season.
The Sun (2016)
Further along, some of the unfinished works that have been included are so unfinished,it would have been kinder to leave them out.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
As well as continuing to publish her own work amid all this she worked on her husband's literary legacy, seeking to complete unfinished work.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
After her death in 2008 his daughter and son enabled him to carry on alone at home, struggling to write an unfinished work despite failing eyesight.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
In other languages
unfinished
British English: unfinished ADJECTIVE
If you describe something such as a work of art or a piece of work as unfinished, you mean that it is not complete, for example because it was abandoned or there was no time to complete it.
...her unfinished novel.
American English: unfinished
Brazilian Portuguese: inacabado
Chinese: 未完成的
European Spanish: inacabado
French: inachevé
German: unvollendet
Italian: incompiuto
Japanese: 未完成の
Korean: 미완성의
European Portuguese: inacabado
Latin American Spanish: inacabado
Chinese translation of 'unfinished'
unfinished
(ʌnˈfɪnɪʃt)
adj
未完成的 (wèi wánchéng de)
unfinished business未做完的事情 (wèi zuòwán de shìqing)
1 (adjective)
Definition
incomplete or imperfect
Jane Austen's unfinished novel
Synonyms
incomplete
Some offices had incomplete information on spending.
uncompleted
half-done
lacking
undone
She left nothing undone that needed attention.
in the making
imperfect
We live in an imperfect world.
unfulfilled
unaccomplished
2 (adjective)
Definition
(of paint) without an applied finish
unfinished wood ready for you to varnish or paint
Synonyms
natural
He prefers to use high quality natural produce.
rough
Make a rough plan of the space.
raw
two ships carrying raw sugar
bare
crude
8.5 million tonnes of crude steel
unrefined
the price of unrefined oil as it comes out of the ground
unvarnished
unpolished
Much of the prose is unpolished.
Opposites
finished
,
polished
,
smooth
,
refined
,
varnished
,
perfected
Additional synonyms
in the sense of crude
Definition
in a natural or unrefined state
8.5 million tonnes of crude steel
Synonyms
unrefined,
natural,
raw,
unprocessed,
unpolished,
unmilled,
unprepared
in the sense of imperfect
Definition
having faults or errors
We live in an imperfect world.
Synonyms
flawed,
impaired,
faulty,
broken,
limited,
damaged,
partial,
unfinished,
incomplete,
defective,
patchy,
immature,
deficient,
rudimentary,
sketchy,
undeveloped,
inexact
in the sense of raw
Definition
in an unfinished or unrefined state
two ships carrying raw sugar
Synonyms
unrefined,
natural,
crude,
unprocessed,
basic,
rough,
organic,
coarse,
unfinished,
untreated,
unripe
Synonyms of 'unfinished'
unfinished
Explore 'unfinished' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of rough
Definition
incomplete or basic
Make a rough plan of the space.
Synonyms
basic,
quick,
raw,
crude,
unfinished,
incomplete,
hasty,
imperfect,
rudimentary,
sketchy,
cursory,
shapeless,
rough-and-ready,
unrefined,
formless,
rough-hewn,
untutored,
unpolished
in the sense of unaccomplished
Synonyms
unfinished,
undone,
incomplete,
uncompleted,
unperformed,
unachieved
in the sense of undone
Definition
not done or completed
She left nothing undone that needed attention.
Synonyms
unfinished,
left,
outstanding,
not done,
neglected,
omitted,
incomplete,
passed over,
unfulfilled,
not completed,
unperformed,
unattended to
in the sense of unpolished
Much of the prose is unpolished.
Synonyms
crude,
rough,
unfinished,
rude,
sketchy,
rough and ready,
unworked,
unfashioned
in the sense of unrefined
the price of unrefined oil as it comes out of the ground