onbedorven

Onbedorven is a Dutch adjective meaning not spoiled or not tainted. It can describe food that has not gone bad and remains safe to consume, as well as substances or states that retain their original quality and integrity. In addition to its culinary sense, onbedorven has a moral or figurative usage to denote someone who has not been corrupted by wrongdoing, implying purity or integrity of character. It stands in contrast to bedorven, which means spoiled, corrupted, or tainted.

Etymology and background: the word is formed with the negating prefix on- combined with bedorven, from the verb bederven meaning to spoil or ruin. The concept appears in Old Dutch and Middle Dutch and continues into modern Dutch, though the moral sense is more formal and can come across as archaic or literary depending on context.

Usage and nuance: in culinary contexts, onbedorven describes perishables that have not spoiled, for example milk or meat that remains fresh. In moral or literary contexts, it has been used to describe a person or reputation that is untainted by corruption. Today, speakers may prefer phrasing such as niet bedorven or onbezoedeld in certain contexts, but onbedorven remains recognizable, particularly in historical or formal writing.

Related terms: bedorven (spoiled), besmet (tainted), verstoord (corrupted), integer (upright, though with a slightly different nuance). See also bederven for the verb and its various senses.