unreasonable

From Middle English unresonable, equivalent to un- +‎ reasonable, originally partly after Latin irratiōnābilis.^[1]

• IPA^(key): /ʌnˈɹiːz.(ə)nə.bl̩/

• Audio (UK):

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• Hyphenation: un‧rea‧son‧a‧ble

unreasonable (comparative more unreasonable, superlative most unreasonable)

1. Without the ability to reason; unreasoning.
   • c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iii]:

     Hold thy desperate hand:
     Art thou a man? thy form cries out thou art:
     Thy tears are womanish; thy wild acts denote
     The unreasonable fury of a beast:
     Unseemly woman in a seeming man!

2. Not reasonable; going beyond what could be expected or asked for.

   Antonym: reasonable

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 25:27:

     For it seemeth to me vnreasonable, to send a prisoner, and not withall to signifie the crimes laid against him.

   • 1791 (date written), Mary Wollstonecraft, “Duty to Parents”, in A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: With Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects, London: […] J[oseph] Johnson, […], published 1792, →OCLC, page 358:

     The will of those who never allow their will to be disputed, unless they happen to be in a good humour, when they relax proportionally, is almost always unreasonable.

   • 2025 January 26, Priscilla Alvarez and Rosa Flores, “Trump administration launches nationwide immigration enforcement blitz”, in CNN‎^[1]:

     The groups claimed the administration’s planned operations targeted the city for its sanctuary status and amount to a violation of their First Amendment right to free speech and Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure, according to the court filing .

• Wednesbury unreasonable
• unreasonableness
• unreasonably