unclean

From Middle English unclene, from Old English unclǣne, equivalent to un- +‎ clean.

• IPA^(key): /ʌnˈkliːn/

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• Rhymes: -iːn

unclean (comparative uncleaner, superlative uncleanest)

1. Dirty, soiled or foul.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:unclean

   • 1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page 194:

     They were gnawing, like beasts, upon unclean food. A pot boiled upon the edge of the fire, and out of it one of the creatures would occasionally drag a hunk of meat with a sharpened stick.

2. Not moral or chaste.
   • 1905, Charles H. Gabriel, “My Savior's Love”, in E.O. Excell, editor, Praises, Chicago: E.O. Excell:

     I stand amazed in the presence / Of Jesus, the Nazarene, / And wonder how He could love me, / A sinner, condemend, unclean.

3. Ritually or ceremonially impure or unfit.