What does unrequited mean?
Unrequited is an adjective meaning that affection, love, attention, or another offering has not been returned. Its most familiar use is in the phrase unrequited love, which describes feelings directed toward someone who does not share them. The word can also apply more broadly to an unrewarded effort or an unanswered request, although such uses are less frequent. Unrequited is usually neutral or gently literary and often conveys a sense of emotional imbalance, longing, or disappointment rather than suggesting that the feeling was insincere. It is common in both British and American English and appears in ordinary conversation as well as in novels, songs, and reflective prose. The word is especially useful because it captures the precise condition of giving or seeking something without receiving the corresponding response. Its familiar rhyme with invited also makes it memorable, while its negative prefix clearly signals the absence of reciprocity.
adjectiveNot returned or reciprocated, especially of affection, love, or attention that is not shared by the person or people concerned.
- Affection, love, or attention that is not returned or reciprocated.
- A request, effort, or action that receives no response or corresponding return.
"She carried his unrequited love for years without telling him."
"Her unrequited devotion to the band continued long after they stopped writing to her."
"The letter was an unrequited request for advice, and no one replied."
Unrequited love is affection with no reply: the message may never be sent, but the feeling certainly is.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of unrequited
The modern English adjective developed around the turn of the 19th century from the prefix un-, meaning “not,” and requited, meaning “returned, repaid, or reciprocated.” Requited comes through French and is related to Latin forms based on quaerere, “to seek” or “to ask for,” the same broad root found behind require and request. The negative prefix gives the modern word its characteristic sense of something given or sought without a corresponding return.
How unrequited is actually used
Neutral to slightly literary, with an emotional undertone of disappointment or asymmetry. It is especially common in discussions of romantic relationships and can describe either the unreciprocated feeling or the person experiencing it.