unprovoked
adjective
un·pro·voked
ˌən-prə-ˈvōkt 
: occurring without any identifiable cause or justification : not provoked
an unprovoked assault/attack
unprovoked anger
Examples of unprovoked in a Sentence
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To hear the critics’ version of events, an unprovoked and unnecessary attack on Iran, launched at Israel’s behest, is already a foreign-policy fiasco that has put the global economy at risk without any clear objective or endgame.
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Bret Stephens, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2026
Even in those quiet hysterics which statued me unprovoked, my imagination had not conjured this rapid an unspooling.
—Literary Hub, 27 Mar. 2026
Any judgment that the attack was preemptive or unprovoked could undermine the logic of deploying Japan's military, known as the Self-Defense Forces (SDF).
—Npr Staff, NPR, 19 Mar. 2026
And so this attack was totally unprovoked.
—Madeleine Wright, CBS News, 19 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unprovoked
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Bret Stephens, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2026
Even in those quiet hysterics which statued me unprovoked, my imagination had not conjured this rapid an unspooling.
—Literary Hub, 27 Mar. 2026
Any judgment that the attack was preemptive or unprovoked could undermine the logic of deploying Japan's military, known as the Self-Defense Forces (SDF).
—Npr Staff, NPR, 19 Mar. 2026
And so this attack was totally unprovoked.
—Madeleine Wright, CBS News, 19 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unprovoked
Cite this Entry
“Unprovoked.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unprovoked. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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