[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/unprovoked/)

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# unprovoked

adjective (unprovoked)

«unprovoked» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

An unprovoked attack or action happens without any reason, when the other person did nothing to cause it. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/U/unprovoked/#m1)

### In the lessons

In news, history and safety it describes violence or attacks that came out of nowhere. In school it can describe hitting or unkindness with no cause. Phrases: an unprovoked attack, completely unprovoked.

### Examples

- The dog's bite was unprovoked; the boy had not touched it. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/U/unprovoked/#x1)
- Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was widely described as unprovoked. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/U/unprovoked/#x2)
- The teacher said the push was unprovoked and unfair. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/U/unprovoked/#x3)
- Shark attacks on people are rare, and unprovoked ones are rarer still. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/U/unprovoked/#x4)
- It was an unprovoked insult. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/U/unprovoked/#x5)
- The court heard it was an unprovoked assault. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/U/unprovoked/#x6)

### Note

Made from un- + provoked (provoke = to cause someone to react, often angrily). Used mostly about attacks and insults.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «unprovoked» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/U/unprovoked/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«unprovoked» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/unprovoked.html) on Mova free.