Unplated

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Lacking any metal coating or plating applied as a surface layer
2. Without a protective or decorative metal covering on the exterior
3. Describes an object that has not been treated with a metal plating process

Etymology: The word is simply the prefix "un-", meaning "not," attached to the adjective "plated," which comes from "plate" in the sense of covering a surface with a thin layer of metal. Its meaning is therefore transparent: an object that has not received such a coating. The prefix "un-" is a native English element, descended from Old English, and it has been used freely to form negative adjectives from participles and adjectives throughout the language's history. Because it attaches to an existing participle, the new formation needs no special explanation, and its sense follows directly from the parts. The word's usefulness lies in manufacturing and craft contexts, where it sets a bare, untreated surface apart from one finished with a metallic layer. Its construction is a straightforward case of a negating prefix on a familiar base.

Antonyms: plated, coated