Etymology

unkept

U1N1K5E1P3T1

Today it means: Not kept (especially of promises). Full definition →

English kept ← Middle English un- ← Old English un-
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unkept · adjective1

  1. Proto-Indo-European*né
  2. Proto-Indo-European*n̥-
  3. Proto-Germanic*un-
  4. Proto-West Germanic*un-
  5. Old Englishun-
  6. Middle Englishun-
  7. Englishun-
  8. Englishkept
  9. English todayunkept

From un- + kept.

unkept · adjective2

Reanalysis of obsolete kempt to kept, keep in the sense “maintain (a coiffure)”. Compare uncombed.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.