1
: not gained by labor, service, or skill
unearned income
2
: scored as a result of an error by the opposing team
an unearned run
Examples of unearned in a Sentence
Bank interest is regarded as unearned income.
Recent Examples on the Web
Even with Wednesday’s dominant performance – Alcantara allowed one unearned run and no walks in seven innings during a 3-2 victory over the San Diego Padres – his ERA is 6.66.
—
Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 24 July 2025
But the tall right-hander, who was the National League Cy Young winner in ‘22, on Wednesday allowed four hits and just one unearned run while completing seven innings for the first time this season.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 July 2025
The Cubs got a fortunate bounce on an infield single, too, and scored two unearned runs.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 22 July 2025
The switch-hitter has not been able to hit from the right side, and his lack of mobility has been costly in the field – one of his two errors led to four unearned runs in Sunday’s 5-1 loss to Arizona.
—Mike Digiovanna, Oc Register, 16 July 2025
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Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 24 July 2025
But the tall right-hander, who was the National League Cy Young winner in ‘22, on Wednesday allowed four hits and just one unearned run while completing seven innings for the first time this season.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 July 2025
The Cubs got a fortunate bounce on an infield single, too, and scored two unearned runs.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 22 July 2025
The switch-hitter has not been able to hit from the right side, and his lack of mobility has been costly in the field – one of his two errors led to four unearned runs in Sunday’s 5-1 loss to Arizona.
—Mike Digiovanna, Oc Register, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for unearned
Cite this Entry
“Unearned.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unearned. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
unearned
adjective
un·earned
ˌən-ˈərnd 
ˈən-
: not gained by labor, service, or skill
unearned income
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