unbehandelte

Unbehandelte is a German adjective meaning untreated or not subjected to any processing. It is formed from the verb behandeln (to treat) with the negating prefix un-, and is used to describe materials, substances, or conditions that have not undergone chemical, mechanical, thermal, or medical treatment.

The term is common in industrial, consumer, and everyday language. It is used with various nouns to indicate a lack of processing, such as unbehandeltes Holz (untreated wood), unbehandelte Baumwolle (untreated cotton), and unbehandeltes Wasser (untreated water). It can also describe objects or surfaces that have not been finished or protected, for example unbehandelte Metalloberflächen or unbehandeltes Leder. In medical contexts, unbehandelt can describe a wound or condition that has not yet received treatment, as in eine unbehandelte Wunde.

Grammatically, unbehandelte is the form used before plural nouns or when the adjective modifies feminine or plural nouns without a preceding definite article in certain declensions. In singular neuter form it is unbehandeltes, and in other cases the endings vary according to gender, case, and article. In addition to its use as a descriptive adjective, Unbehandelte can occasionally appear capitalized as a noun (die Unbehandelten) to refer to people who have not received treatment, though this usage is relatively rare and mainly found in sociological or historical contexts.

Synonyms include roh, ungebehandelt, or naturbelassen, depending on the context. The term contrasts with words describing treated or processed items, such as behandeltes Holz or chemisch behandeltes Wasser.