unbridled
/ʌn'braidld/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Not restrained or controlled: Describes something, typically a strong emotion, force, or behavior, that is allowed to operate or express itself without any limits, checks, or moderation.
- Unchecked, ungoverned: Emphasizes a lack of external control or internal discipline.
Usage and Examples
- Adjective:
- The speech ignited unbridled enthusiasm in the crowd. (The crowd's enthusiasm was extreme and not held back.)
- He was known for his unbridled ambition, which sometimes alarmed his colleagues. (His ambition had no limits or restraint.)
- The novel is a tale of unbridled passion and its consequences. (The passion in the story is wild and uncontrolled.)
Advanced Usage and Nuances
- "Unbridled" is often used with abstract nouns denoting powerful forces or emotions, such as . It carries a connotation of something being unleashed in its raw, potent, and sometimes dangerous form.
- While it can have a neutral or positive sense (e.g., ), it frequently implies a negative judgment, suggesting that the lack of restraint is excessive, reckless, or destructive.
Variants and Related Words
- Unbridle (verb, rare): To free from restraint; to remove the bridle from.
- To unbridle one's tongue is to speak without restraint.
- Bridle (verb/noun): The act of restraining or the means of restraint (like a horse's bridle), providing a direct antonymic root.
- Unchecked (adj.): Similar to "unbridled," meaning not stopped or slowed by controls.
- Ungoverned (adj.): Not governed or controlled by rules or authority.
Synonyms
- Unrestrained: Not held in check; uncontrolled.
- Unchecked: Not stopped, verified, or controlled.
- Ungoverned: Lacking discipline or control.
- Rampant: Flourishing or spreading unchecked, often negatively.
- Runaway: Escaping control, as in .
Antonyms
- Bridled: Restrained, controlled.
- Restrained: Kept under control; moderate.
- Checked: Held back or slowed down.
- Governed: Controlled by rules or authority.
- Tempered: Moderated or mitigated in intensity.
Idiomatic Expressions and Phrases
- Give unbridled rein to: To allow (an emotion, activity, etc.) complete freedom without any restriction.
- The artist gave unbridled rein to his imagination. (He allowed his imagination complete freedom.)
- With unbridled...: A common prepositional phrase used to intensify a noun.
- She greeted the news with unbridled delight. (Her delight was completely unrestrained.)
Adjective
- not restrained or controlled
- unbridled rage
- an unchecked temper
- ungoverned rage