unorthodox

adjective

un·​or·​tho·​dox ˌən-ˈȯr-thə-ˌdäks How to pronounce unorthodox (audio)
: not orthodox
unorthodoxly adverb

Examples of unorthodox in a Sentence

a time when people with unorthodox religious views were banished from the colony raised by an aunt, whose unorthodox parenting practices made for a strange but fun childhood
Recent Examples on the Web To try to find a way out of the impasse around forming a government — and to avoid everyone’s least favorite option, new elections — politicians have been talking about unorthodox arrangements with little or no precedent. Claire Moses, New York Times, 11 Mar. 2024 Refuse to let anyone manipulate you using unorthodox means. Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 10 Mar. 2024 As the two navigate their unorthodox romance, Solène must also learn to juggle her career and her daughter while avoiding the 24-hour news cycle in pursuit of Campbell. Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024 His unorthodox journey to get there was inevitably met with criticism from certain quarters, but Eshun, for one, doesn’t consider journalism and curation all that far removed from one another as disciplines. Funmi Fetto, Vogue, 5 Mar. 2024 There have been calls for OpenAI to dissolve its nonprofit side, but the unorthodox structure remains in place. Juliana Kim, NPR, 1 Mar. 2024 Erdogan, who has previously fired central bank governors who spurned his unorthodox policies, appointed the new economic team after getting reelected in May. Ayse Wieting, Quartz, 8 Feb. 2024 Russian forces have a different threshold of pain, one senior Western official said this month, as well as an unorthodox view of what is considered an acceptable level of military losses. Anatoly Kurmanaev, New York Times, 27 Feb. 2024 Their remarkable skills and unorthodox methods quickly disrupt the social hierarchy in the club – headed by former world champion Willy – as well as the local youth community. Annika Pham, Variety, 23 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unorthodox.' 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

1629, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of unorthodox was in 1629

Dictionary Entries Near unorthodox

Cite this Entry

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

Kids Definition

unorthodox

adjective
un·​or·​tho·​dox ˌən-ˈȯr-thə-ˌdäks How to pronounce unorthodox (audio)
ˈən-
: not orthodox : not usual
an unorthodox teaching method

More from Merriam-Webster on unorthodox

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