unbidden

adjective

un·​bid·​den ˌən-ˈbi-dᵊn How to pronounce unbidden (audio)
variants or less commonly unbid
: not bidden : unasked, uninvited
barged in unbidden

Examples of unbidden in a Sentence

thoughts that come to the mind unbidden she arrived, unbidden, to help out at the Red Cross center
Recent Examples on the Web And like Peter Falk’s immortal gumshoe, Elsbeth — who will insert herself unbidden into an investigation — asks a lot of questions, some merely out of curiosity. Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2024 Haley is the only female candidate in the G.O.P. primary, a fact that many voters in New Hampshire told me, unbidden, they were drawn to. Antonia Hitchens, The New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2023 What is so remarkable here is that hundreds of readers had civil discourse unbidden. Cquinn, cleveland, 16 Sep. 2023 Some users, when confronted by Guy’s unbidden tweets in their timelines, chose to attack him or mock him to their followers, tagging him in. WIRED, 27 Jan. 2023 Sarah Longwell, an anti-Trump Republican pollster who regularly conducts focus groups with GOP-leaning voters, says her panelists used to bring up Florida Governor Ron DeSantis unbidden, while mentioning Ramaswamy barely at all. Time, 17 Aug. 2023 In the six months since the USMNT has been without a coach, numerous players have vouched for Berhalter, usually unbidden. Nancy Armour, USA TODAY, 16 June 2023 Even before the French team left the stadium grounds on Sunday night, both left-wing and right-wing politicians and pundits began accusing Macron of orchestrating a tone-deaf political show, by intruding unbidden on the players’ intimate moment of distress, for his own ends. Vivienne Walt, Fortune, 19 Dec. 2022 Both the sirens and Proteus know much, if not all, that has happened upon the face of the earth, but whereas the sirens sing their song unbidden while taking the hearer’s life in return, Proteus under compulsion tells the hearer the proper animal sacrifice to offer to propitiate the gods. Marina Warner, The New York Review of Books, 27 May 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unbidden.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English unbiden, unbeden, from Old English unbeden, from un- + beden, past participle of biddan to entreat — more at bid entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of unbidden was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near unbidden

Cite this Entry

“Unbidden.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unbidden. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

unbidden

adjective
un·​bid·​den ˌən-ˈbid-ᵊn How to pronounce unbidden (audio)
variants also unbid
: not bidden : unasked, uninvited
she barged in unbidden
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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