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unaccompanied

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Etymology and origin of the English word unaccompanied

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1545 T. Raynald's translation of Roesslin's Byrth of Mankynde More words from the 16th century
Ultimate origin
Old French acompaignier

Pronunciation

  • /ˌʌnəˈkʌmpənid/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English un- + accompanied, the past participle of accompany.[2][3][4][5][6] The verb is from Old French acompaignier (“to take as a companion”), from à (“to”) and compaignier, from compaign, the source of companion.[4][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Not accompanied or attended: 1545, in T. Raynald's translation of Roesslin's Byrth of Mankynde.[2][3] Etymonline dates it to the 1540s, in the sense of having no companions or attendants,[4] and Dictionary.com to 1535–45.[6]

Semantic evolution

Johnson (1755) defined it as "not attended", quoting Hayward: "Seldom one accident, prosperous or adverse, cometh unaccompanied with the like."[7] It is also used with by or with for a thing that occurs without another.[2][5][3] The musical sense, without instrumental accompaniment, appears in 1818, in T. Busby's Grammar of Music,[2][4] following the musical use of accompany, to play or sing along with, from the 1570s.[4]

Timeline

  • 1545 – not accompanied or attended.[2][3]
  • 1818 – without instrumental accompaniment.[2][4]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Having no companion or escort; alone: The museum does not admit unaccompanied children under twelve.[8][3][2]
  2. Not occurring together with something else (used with by or with): His enthusiasm was unaccompanied by any real knowledge.[3][2][5]
  3. (music) Performed without instrumental accompaniment, as by a choir; of an instrument, playing solo.[8][3][2]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  7. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  8. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Unaccompanied.” Etymologically, 8 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/en/unaccompanied. Accessed 9 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·