unintended.

Not included in what someone intended or sought to bring about.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• unintended consequence
• unintended effect

On the page

The restriction produced an unintended consequence for the people it was meant to protect.

An unintended ambiguity remained after the editor shortened the sentence.

Usage notes

Primary category: literary / elevated general. Forms: Ordinarily non-gradable in the stated categorical sense; compare degree only where the context genuinely permits it. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: description, interpretation, contrast, characterization. Disciplines: prose writing, literary analysis, advanced general English. Commonness: moderately common.