unneutered

IPA/ʌnˈnjuː.təd/
IPA/ʌnˈnuː.t̬ɚd/

unneutered — adjective

  • unneuteredpositive
  • more unneuteredcomparative
  • most unneuteredsuperlative

1. refers to an animal kept by people that can still produce young because its repr

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

refers to an animal kept by people that can still produce young because its reproductive body parts were left in place

Example

The animal shelter refused to let Alessia adopt an unneutered male cat.

attributive position: unneutered + [type of animal]

Diya's neighbour has an unneutered dog that keeps escaping from the garden.

Common collocations
  • unneutered cat
  • unneutered dog
  • unneutered male
  • unneutered animal
  • unneutered pet
  • still unneutered
  • remain unneutered
Synonyms
  • intact

    more clinical or technical; preferred in veterinary medicine, but also has unrelated meanings (e.g. undamaged)

  • unfixed

    informal, used mainly in US animal-welfare contexts

  • whole

    broader and less precise; can also mean 'entire' or 'unharmed'

Antonyms
  • neutered

    the direct opposite for both sexes

  • spayed

    female-specific; refers to removal of the ovaries or uterus

  • castrated

    male-specific; refers to removal of the testicles

Grammar Patterns

unneutered + [animal noun]

[verb] + unneutered

Usage Note

Frequently used attributively before nouns for types of animal, but also appears predicatively (e.g. 'The cat is still unneutered'). Applies to both males (castrated) and females (spayed).

Common Mistakes

The clinic treats unneutered human patients.
The clinic treats unneutered animals.
this term describes animals only, never people.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

'Intact' is the most clinical term, common in veterinary records and surgical consent forms — it sounds neutral and professional. 'Unneutered' is the everyday standard in animal welfare and shelter contexts, widely understood by the general public. 'Unfixed' is informal and mainly American; you would hear it in casual conversation at a dog park but rarely see it in a vet's written notes. 'Whole' is vaguer — it can describe an animal that has not been neutered, but it more often means 'not broken' or 'complete'. For example, a shelter worker might say 'We only adopt out unneutered animals to approved breeders', while a vet writes 'intact male' on a chart, and a neighbour might ask 'Is your dog still unfixed?'

intact ↗unfixed ↗whole ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • still unneutered
  • remain unneutered

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Formed in modern English by adding the negative prefix 'un-' to 'neutered', the past participle of the verb 'neuter'. 'Neuter' entered English from Latin 'neuter' meaning 'neither', originally a grammatical term for verbs that are neither active nor passive, then later (19th–20th century) extended to animal surgery.