unmanned

adjective

un·​manned ˌən-ˈmand How to pronounce unmanned (audio)
1
see usage paragraph below : not carrying, staffed, or performed by people : not manned
an unmanned railroad crossing
unmanned spaceflight
2
of a hawk : not trained
Usage of Manned and Unmanned

While manned and unmanned are still commonly used in news sources to describe spaceflights, NASA has since the early 21st century used and prescribed non-gender-specific terms, preferring such descriptors as human, piloted, and crewed for the former, and unpiloted and uncrewed for the latter.

Examples of unmanned in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web There were earlier low-resolution ones in the ’40s, made from unmanned missiles or whatever. Lucy McKeon, New York Times, 3 June 2024 Adding fuel to the group's claims, a February 2024 Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) report demonstrates Iranian support to Houthi proxies through side-by-side comparisons of Houthi and Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles and missile systems. Beth Bailey, Fox News, 25 May 2024 Legislators also added a requirement that the cameras be accompanied by signs that read drivers’ speeds back to them, and cut out a provision that would have allowed the speed cameras to run unmanned. Dan Belson, Baltimore Sun, 22 Mar. 2024 Both companies were given multibillion-dollar contracts in 2014 to develop the craft, and since 2020 Elon Musk’s Hawthorne company has ferried eight operations crews to the base — while Boeing has managed only two unmanned flights. Laurence Darmiento, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for unmanned 

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

Word History

First Known Use

1544, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of unmanned was in 1544

Dictionary Entries Near unmanned

Cite this Entry

“Unmanned.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unmanned. Accessed 7 Jun. 2024.

Kids Definition

unmanned

adjective
un·​manned ˌən-ˈmand How to pronounce unmanned (audio)
ˈən-
: having no crew aboard
an unmanned spacecraft

More from Merriam-Webster on unmanned

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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