Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Not recognized or known; having an identity that is not established or confirmed: Describes something or someone whose specific name, nature, or origin is not known or has not been verified.
   • Not yet identified: Specifically refers to something that remains to be named, classified, or recognized.

Examples of Usage

• Adjective:
  • The police are searching for an unidentified man seen near the scene. (The specific identity of the man is not known.)
  • An unidentified object was spotted in the night sky. (The nature and origin of the object are not known.)
  • The virus came from an unidentified source. (The exact origin of the virus has not been determined.)

Advanced Usage

• "Unidentified flying object (UFO)": A common term for an aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified.

  • Many reports of unidentified flying objects remain unexplained.

• "Unidentified remains": Refers to human remains for which the identity has not been established.

  • The coroner's office is working to identify the unidentified remains.

Variants and Related Words

• Unidentifiable (adj): Impossible to identify.

  • The blurry photo made the suspect unidentifiable.

• Identify (v): To establish or indicate who or what someone or something is.

• Identification (n): The action or process of identifying someone or something.

Synonyms

• Unknown: Not known or familiar.
• Unnamed: Not having a name specified.
• Anonymous: Not identified by name; of unknown name.
• Nameless: Having no name; anonymous.

Related Phrases

• Unidentified caller: A telephone caller whose number or identity is not displayed or known.

  • She ignored the call from an unidentified caller.

• Unidentified substance: A material whose chemical composition is not known.

  • The lab is analyzing the unidentified substance found at the site.

Related Idioms

Note: There are no common idioms that use the exact word "unidentified" as a core component. The term is typically used in straightforward descriptive contexts.

Adjective

1. being or having an unknown or unnamed source
   • a poem by an unknown author
   • corporations responsible to nameless owners
   • an unnamed donor
2. not yet identified
   • an unidentified species
   • an unidentified witness