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Meaning & use

unruled paper

noun·Everyday

Last updated

UK/ʌnˈruːld ˈpeɪpə/
US/ʌnˈruːld ˈpeɪpər/

Meaning

  1. noununcountable

    Paper with a blank surface that has no printed lines, used for drawing, sketching or writing freely.

    Grammar: Treated as a mass noun: some unruled paper, a sheet of unruled paper.

    Patterns

    • a sheet of unruled paper
    • write on unruled paper

    The art teacher asked everyone to bring a pad of unruled paper.

    I prefer unruled paper for notes because I like to draw diagrams.

    Please print the letter on unruled paper, not the lined kind.

Common combinations

a ream of unruled paper
The studio ordered a ream of unruled paper for sketching.
a sheet of unruled paper
Write your answer on a sheet of unruled paper.
sketch on unruled paper
She likes to sketch on unruled paper because lines feel limiting.
unruled paper pad
He keeps an unruled paper pad next to the phone.

Synonyms and how they differ

plain paper
Plain paper is the more common everyday phrase and can mean any paper without printing, not specifically without lines.
blank paper
Blank paper stresses that nothing is written on it yet, whereas unruled paper stresses that it has no guide lines.
unlined paper
Unlined paper means exactly the same but sounds more ordinary than the slightly technical unruled.

Opposites

lined paperruled paper

Word family

rule verb
to draw a straight line
ruled adjective
marked with lines
ruler noun
a straight-edged tool for measuring or drawing lines
unruled adjective
having no printed lines

Commonly confused: unruled paper or unruly?

unruled paper vs unruly

Unruly means hard to control, as in an unruly crowd, and has nothing to do with lines on paper.

Practice

A designer who wants to sketch freely without guide lines should choose ______.

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