unfulfilled

/'ʌnfrul'fild/

Thân thiện

A young artist stares at an unfulfilled canvas in her studio.

Definition

Adjective: 1. Not achieved or realized: Describes a state where something hoped for, desired, or aimed at has not been accomplished or has not come to pass. 2. Not satisfied or content: Describes a person who feels a sense of lack or disappointment because their potential, ambitions, or emotional needs have not been met.

Usage

The adjective unfulfilled is used to describe either a person's internal state or an external condition (like a promise, dream, or task). It often carries a tone of regret, incompleteness, or longing.

Examples

• Describing a person's state:
  • She felt unfulfilled in her career and decided to go back to school.
  • He was an unfulfilled artist who never got the recognition he deserved.
• Describing a condition or object:
  • The contract remained unfulfilled due to the supplier's bankruptcy.
  • Her lifelong dream of visiting Paris was sadly unfulfilled.

Advanced Usage

• "unfulfilled potential": A common phrase describing talent or ability that was never fully developed or used.
  • The novel is a study of unfulfilled potential and quiet desperation.
• "unfulfilled promise": Can refer literally to a promise not kept, or metaphorically to early talent that did not develop as expected.
  • The young athlete was once considered an unfulfilled promise.

Variants and Related Words

• Unfulfilling (adj): Describes an activity or situation that does not provide satisfaction or a sense of achievement.
  • He found the repetitive work deeply unfulfilling.
• Fulfill (v): The root verb meaning to achieve, realize, or carry out.
• Fulfilled (adj): The direct opposite, meaning satisfied or having achieved one's desires.

Synonyms

• Unsatisfied: Not content or pleased.
• Unrealized: Not achieved or made real.
• Unachieved: Not successfully brought to completion.
• Frustrated: Feeling upset or annoyed as a result of being unable to change or achieve something.

Antonyms

• Fulfilled
• Satisfied
• Realized
• Achieved
• Content

Notes on Meaning

The meaning of unfulfilled can shift slightly based on context: 1. Objective/External Focus: When referring to tasks, contracts, or prophecies, it means "not completed or carried out." 2. Subjective/Internal Focus: When referring to people, dreams, or potential, it implies a deeper sense of personal disappointment and missed opportunity.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. of persons; marked by failure to realize full potentialities
   • unfulfilled and uneasy men
   • unrealized dreams and ambitions

Từ đồng nghĩa

• unrealized
• unrealised