unwritten
/' n'ritn/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Not recorded in writing; existing or transmitted through speech or custom: Refers to something that is communicated or understood without being formally written down.
- Not formally enacted or codified: Describes rules, laws, or agreements that are based on tradition, practice, or common understanding rather than official documents.
- Blank; not written on: Describes a surface, like paper, that has no marks or writing on it (this meaning is less common in modern usage).
Examples of Usage
- Adjective:
- The company's success relies on an unwritten code of conduct among employees.
- Many indigenous cultures preserve their history through unwritten oral traditions.
- She handed him an unwritten sheet of paper for his notes.
Advanced Usage
- "Unwritten rule": A rule or norm that is generally understood and followed by members of a group, society, or organization, but is not part of any official code.
- It's an unwritten rule that you don't talk loudly on your phone in the library.
- "Unwritten agreement": An understanding or pact between parties that is based on trust and verbal communication, not a signed contract.
- Their partnership worked for years based on an unwritten agreement.
Variants and Related Words
- Unwritten law (noun phrase): A law or principle that rests on custom, judicial decision, or natural justice rather than on written statutes.
- The defense argued it was a case of unwritten law, a crime of passion.
- Unwritten constitution (noun phrase): A constitution not embodied in a single document but based on statutes, customs, and precedents (e.g., the constitution of the United Kingdom).
Synonyms
- Oral: Spoken rather than written.
- Customary: According to or based on custom.
- Traditional: Existing in or as part of a tradition; long-established.
- Verbal: Relating to or in the form of words, especially spoken words.
Antonyms
- Written: Expressed in writing.
- Codified: Organized into a systematic code or set of rules.
- Formalized: Given a definite structure or form, often in writing.
- Documented: Recorded in documents.
Related Idioms and Phrases
- The unwritten book of...: A metaphorical phrase referring to the collective, unrecorded knowledge or rules of a particular field or activity.
- He learned the tricks of the trade from the unwritten book of experience.
Adjective
- said or done without having been planned or written in advance
- he made a few ad-lib remarks
- using speech rather than writing
- an oral tradition
- an oral agreement
- based on custom rather than documentation
- an unwritten law
- rites...so ancient that they well might have had their unwritten origins in Aurignacian times- J.L.T.C.Spence