unhook
Americanverb (used with object)
-
unhooks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
unhooked,
past participle, past
-
unhooking
present participle
verb (used without object)
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unhooks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
unhooked,
past participle, past
-
unhooking
present participle
verb
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(tr) to remove (something) from a hook
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(tr) to unfasten the hook of (a dress, etc)
-
(intr) to become unfastened or be capable of unfastening
the dress wouldn't unhook
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
unhooksimple
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unhookssimple
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have unhookedperfect
-
has unhookedperfect
-
am unhookingprogressive
-
are unhookingprogressive
-
is unhookingprogressive
-
have been unhookingperfect progressive
-
has been unhookingperfect progressive
Past
-
unhookedsimple
-
had unhookedperfect
-
was unhookingprogressive
-
were unhookingprogressive
-
had been unhookingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of unhook
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
You have to come to a meeting spot at the border, unhook all your trucks and trailers, bring in another truck to bring it in to the U.S.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 2, 2024
While trains and trucks also transport EVs, isolating and extinguishing fires is easier as workers can unhook a rail car and a trucker can pull over, said Frazee.
From Reuters ● Jul. 27, 2023
In Thomson’s view, a pregnant individual’s right to bodily autonomy permits them to unhook from the violinist, so to speak, no matter anyone else’s view of what is noble or moral or humane.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 3, 2022
When doctors said it was time, they signed the necessary paperwork allowing the staff to unhook him from the machines.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 14, 2019
I sat back, waiting for the techs to come out to unhook us from the equipment, but after a few seconds, I realized that was different here too.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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He reels in the baitfish, unhooks it, rehooks it with the shark hook, and tosses the bobber, leader, and bait back out, before handing the shark rod to me.
From Slate ● Sep. 1, 2022
Mallory Sarver unhooks one, loosens the drawstring, reaches in and pulls out a tiny bird with a gray head, a brilliant yellow belly with black streaks and white stripes on its black wings.
From Washington Times ● May 26, 2018
He reels in both lines, unhooks the fish and transfers it to his son’s rig.
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 19, 2016
The flap is connected with a unique clip that unhooks with a downward squeeze.
From Time ● May 10, 2016
He unhooks a heavy ring of keys from his belt loop, shaking his head.
From "Wintergirls" by Laurie Halse Anderson
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Getting unhooked from the era of easy money could bring some headaches along the way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 2, 2026
Once he’d parked the buggy, he unhooked the black box from its compartment, tucking this precious cargo underneath his arm.
From Slate ● Sep. 30, 2023
They later unhooked him from the car and put him on the ground to wait for a shuttle to take him to a processing station.
From Washington Times ● Feb. 26, 2023
Before the start of a news conference on Wednesday, officials unhooked their masks in quick succession, a staged gesture that deviated from past Covid-19 protocols.
From New York Times ● Dec. 1, 2022
In front of us, Corban and Blake were already unhooked, while Eliana and Tess finished taking off the last of their probes.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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It can be physical work — it takes multiple people, for example, to turn a patient without unhooking any equipment.
From New York Times ● Feb. 15, 2022
He argues that endangering the subsidy would be "like unhooking a patient from intensive care".
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2021
It’s simply about unhooking your brain from the harmful routines it has adopted around this particular device, and hooking it to better things.
From New York Times ● Feb. 23, 2019
“I caught some snow all the way from Ohio,” he said, while unhooking a Kia SUV from the trailer bed.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 21, 2018
My arms grab her, unhooking her from the zip line.
From "Paradise on Fire" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.