unkempt
adjective
un·kempt ˌən-ˈkem(p)t 
1
: not combed
unkempt hair
2
: deficient in order or neatness
unkempt individuals
unkempt hotel rooms
also : rough, unpolished
unkempt prose
Synonyms
- chaotic
- cluttered
- confused
- disarranged
- disarrayed
- disheveled
- dishevelled
- disordered
- disorderly
- higgledy-piggledy
- hugger-mugger
- jumbled
- littered
- messed
- messy
- muddled
- mussed
- mussy
- pell-mell
- rumpled
- sloppy
- topsy-turvy
- tousled
- tumbled
- untidy
- upside-down
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
She wore rumpled clothing and her hair was unkempt. an unkempt and cluttered room
Recent Examples on the Web Today, such a blunder would represent a refusal to survey the field; a refusal to recognize that American politics, like politics everywhere else in the world, is grubby and unkempt and ... 
Charles C. W. Cooke, National Review, 25 Aug. 2022 It's also obsessed with funeral rites and mortuary practices, to keep ghouls from rising out of unkempt and abandoned graves. Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 8 June 2022 After Portopiccolo acquired the home, Bertha appeared increasingly unkempt. Yasmin Rafiei, The New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2022 Call them unkempt, disruptive, or brash; at least dirtbags are honest. Adrienne Matei, The Atlantic, 26 July 2022 Kaczynski was described as an unkempt loner in the sleepy mountain town who ate rabbits, lived without power and rode his bike to the town’s library. Fox News, 31 July 2022 With a mop of unkempt hair and a penchant for elegant double-breasted suits, Souki didn’t look the part of a Houston wildcatter. New York Times, 6 July 2022 One that also includes a dirty toilet and an unkempt bed. Andy Meek, BGR, 13 July 2022 In contrast, grunge — the unkempt, punk-rock, socially progressive answer to rock ’n’ roll decadence — was just beginning to bubble up in the Pacific Northwest, and would soon make headway in the Top 40. Suzy Expositostaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2022 See More
Charles C. W. Cooke, National Review, 25 Aug. 2022 It's also obsessed with funeral rites and mortuary practices, to keep ghouls from rising out of unkempt and abandoned graves. Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 8 June 2022 After Portopiccolo acquired the home, Bertha appeared increasingly unkempt. Yasmin Rafiei, The New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2022 Call them unkempt, disruptive, or brash; at least dirtbags are honest. Adrienne Matei, The Atlantic, 26 July 2022 Kaczynski was described as an unkempt loner in the sleepy mountain town who ate rabbits, lived without power and rode his bike to the town’s library. Fox News, 31 July 2022 With a mop of unkempt hair and a penchant for elegant double-breasted suits, Souki didn’t look the part of a Houston wildcatter. New York Times, 6 July 2022 One that also includes a dirty toilet and an unkempt bed. Andy Meek, BGR, 13 July 2022 In contrast, grunge — the unkempt, punk-rock, socially progressive answer to rock ’n’ roll decadence — was just beginning to bubble up in the Pacific Northwest, and would soon make headway in the Top 40. Suzy Expositostaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English unkemd, unkempt, from un- + kembed, kempt, past participle of kemben to comb, from Old English cemban; akin to Old High German chempen to comb, Old English camb comb — more at comb
First Known Use
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
unkempt
adjective
un·kempt ˌən-ˈkempt
1
: not combed
unkempt hair
2
: not neat and orderly : untidy
an unkempt room
unkempt
adjective
1
as in messy
lacking in order, neatness, and often cleanliness an unkempt and cluttered room Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- messy
- chaotic
- littered
- confused
- filthy
- cluttered
- disheveled
- sloppy
- messed
- shaggy
- jumbled
- dirty
- untidy
- rumpled
- tousled
- disorderly
- stained
- disarrayed
- wrinkled
- disordered
- tangled
- mussed
- disarranged
- dishevelled
- muddled
- tumbled
- mussy
- grimy
- nasty
- blackened
- slovenly
- bedraggled
- uncombed
- unclean
- dingy
- knotted
- higgledy-piggledy
- squalid
- grubby
- grungy
- spotted
- soiled
- smudged
- begrimed
- dowdy
- sloven
- hugger-mugger
- draggled
- topsy-turvy
- frowsy
- uncleanly
- mucky
- out of joint
- upside-down
- sullied
- befouled
- polluted
- neglected
- pell-mell
- besmirched
- slatternly
- shabby
- frowzy
- contaminated
- grotty
- at sixes and sevens
- cruddy
- snarled
- foul
- neglectful
- defiled
- tainted
- adulterated
- negligent
- seedy
- sordid
- bemired
- sleazy
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- kempt
- orderly
- tidy
- neat
- trim
- uncluttered
- clean
- organized
- spotless
- cleaned
- immaculate
- crisp
- unsullied
- shipshape
- unsoiled
- hygienic
- sparkling
- antiseptic
- systematic
- ordered
- stainless
- regular
- snug
- cleanly
- neatened
- methodical
- careful
- tidied
- meticulous
- well-ordered
- fastidious
- manicured
- methodic
- systematized
- fussy
- finicky
- bandbox
- spic-and-span
- spick-and-span
- groomed
- combed
- wholesome
- unpolluted
- untainted
- well-groomed
- undefiled
- taintless
2
as in sloppy
lacking neatness in dress or person the stereotype of the unkempt but brilliant scientist Synonyms & Similar Words
- sloppy
- shaggy
- untidy
- wrinkled
- slovenly
- messy
- sloven
- dowdy
- frowsy
- blowsy
- filthy
- confused
- frowzy
- slobbish
- slobby
- disheveled
- blowzy
- chaotic
- dirty
- uncombed
- rumpled
- cluttered
- shabby
- dishevelled
- slatternly
- mussed
- disarranged
- disordered
- stained
- messed
- grimy
- muddled
- blackened
- mussy
- unclean
- dingy
- nasty
- squalid
- grungy
- grubby
- soiled
- uncleanly
- mucky
- scuzzy
- sleazy
- sullied
- scroungy
- besmirched
- spotted
- foul
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- dapper
- sharp
- fashionable
- smart
- stylish
- dashing
- chic
- spruce
- tidy
- orderly
- neat
- groomed
- modish
- combed
- careful
- clean
- meticulous
- immaculate
- spotless
- fastidious
- fussy
- cleaned
- unsullied
- sparkling
- unsoiled
- ordered
- dolled up
- stainless
- cleanly