decouple

American  

[dee-kuhp-uhl] / diˈkʌp əl /

verb (used with object)

decoupled, decoupling

1. to cause to become separated, disconnected, or divergent; uncouple.

2. to absorb the shock of (a nuclear explosion).

   a surrounding mass of earth and rock can decouple a nuclear blast.

3. Electronics. to loosen or eliminate the coupling of (a signal between two circuits).

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verb (used without object)

decoupled, decoupling

1. to separate or diverge from an existing connection; uncouple.

decouple British  

/ ˌdiːˈkʌpəl /

verb

1. (tr) to separate (joined or coupled subsystems) thereby enabling them to exist and operate separately

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Other Word Forms

• decoupler
  noun

Etymology

Origin of decouple

First recorded in 1595–1605; de- + couple

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

decouple decoupled decoupling

But there’s another bonus, he said, because the heat storage can decouple the company from the volatility of the energy market.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

“Diversification across countries would be much less helpful, as in 2000, global equity markets were unable to decouple from the U.S. market, with emerging markets in Asia actually underperforming the U.S.”

From Barron's ● Feb. 26, 2026

Ahead of boarding the plane on Tuesday night, Merz said Germany would continue its broader de-risking policy but that, "it would be a mistake for us to seek to decouple ourselves from China".

From BBC ● Feb. 24, 2026

The longer the blackout continues, the more market action continues to decouple from fundamentals and turn toward narrative-driven flows and momentum on unwarranted fundamentals.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 11, 2025

“Tina” doesn’t entirely decouple Ike from Turner’s story, a fact she knows is impossible and with which she comes to terms.

From Salon ● Mar. 27, 2021

The likes of Helen Paul vehemently stand by their findings - arguing that the South Sea Annuities cannot be decoupled from the South Sea Company's slave-trafficking activities.

From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026

I haven’t bought or sold property since the National Association of Realtors ruling that decoupled buyer’s and seller’s agent commissions.

From MarketWatch ● May 19, 2026

“That decoupled world requires new manufacturing in the U.S. That is driving a lot of demand,” Strazik added.

From Barron's ● Feb. 8, 2026

If the merger happens, Union Pacific says it could build more trains specifically for destinations on the Eastern seaboard, reducing the need for railcars to be decoupled at a busy interchange.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 16, 2025

What made the scheme novel was that for the first time it decoupled a test moratorium from all other disarmament issues, thereby removing the major cause of the deadlock between the two countries.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

The discovery may also help explain another puzzling hallmark of aging called "protein-transcript decoupling."

From Science Daily ● May 29, 2026

"Any delusion of full decoupling isn't realistic on any near-term horizon", she told AFP.

From Barron's ● May 13, 2026

That follows years of decoupling due to a U.S. exceptionalism narrative.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 7, 2026

This is certainly a far cry from the optimistic globalism of 30 years ago, but it may be the only way forward that avoids a complete, chaotic decoupling.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026

Finally, they go, it will accept decoupling and modulation.

From The Belgian Curtain Europe after Communism by Vaknin, Samuel