I. “+ adjective
Etymology: Middle English unwasched, from un- (I) + wasched, past participle of waschen to wash
1. : not cleaned with or as if with soap and water
a sink full of unwashed dishes
2. : belonging to or characteristic of the common herd : ignorant , plebeian
the country is intellectually unwashed — George Moore
popular support … lay in the unwashed social stratum — Time
II. noun
( -s )
: an ignorant or underprivileged group : rabble
spreading … sunshine among the unwashed as well as the nobility — C.W.Ferguson
— often used in the phrase the great unwashed
from the society woman down to numbers of the great unwashed — Sydney (Australia) Mail