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Can you be scathed instead of unscathed?
We often hear of a person coming through some difficult circumstance, or dangerous endeavor, and “emerging unscathed,” yet we rarely hear of anyone “emerging scathed.” Why is this? Scathe is a word: it may function as a noun (“harm, injury”) or as a verb (“to do harm to,” “to assail with withering denunciation”). It is not as commonly found as it once was, and now primarily serves as the basis for the adjective scathing (“bitterly severe”) or for the latter portion of unscathed. So you can say that someone “emerged scathed” if you wish, but be advised that it will have a curiously archaic sound to it.
Examples of unscathed in a Sentence
Elizabeth Gamillo, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 June 2025
Celebrities who enjoy this experience are the rare beings who have conquered the beast and come out relatively unscathed.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 29 May 2025
For the moment, however, the South African president emerged relatively unscathed even as Trump sought to use the encounter as aggressively as possible.
—Niall Stanage, The Hill, 21 May 2025
And finally, newcomer Boros impresses as a combative young woman who gets repeatedly put through the wringer, barely coming out of the movie unscathed.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 19 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for unscathed
Cite this Entry
“Unscathed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unscathed. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.
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unscathed
adjective
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