unplucked

A chicken with unplucked feathers stands in the farmyard.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Not having been pulled or removed: "unplucked" describes something that has not been taken out, such as a flower, fruit, or feather.
   • Not having been stripped of feathers: Specifically for birds, "unplucked" means the feathers have not been removed, as in preparing poultry for cooking.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • The rose remained unplucked in the garden, still blooming. (The flower had not been picked.)
  • The chicken was unplucked, so we had to remove the feathers ourselves. (The bird's feathers had not been taken off.)

Advanced Usage

• "to leave unplucked": to intentionally not remove something.

  • She left the apple unplucked on the tree, waiting for it to ripen. (She did not pick the apple.)

• "unplucked strings": In music, refers to strings on an instrument that have not been played or plucked.

  • The harp's unplucked strings hung silently in the corner. (The strings had not been touched or sounded.)

Variants and Related Words

• Pluck (verb): to pull or remove something quickly.

  • He plucked a flower from the bush. (He picked it with a quick motion.)

• Plucked (adj): having been pulled or removed.

  • The plucked chicken was ready for roasting. (The feathers had been taken off.)

Synonyms

• Ungathered: not collected or picked.
• Unpicked: not selected or removed.
• Unstripped: not having had something removed.

Related Idioms

• "Pluck up the courage": to gather bravery (opposite of being unplucked in spirit).
  • He plucked up the courage to speak. (He found the bravery to talk.)