uncouple
Americanverb (used with object)
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uncouples,
present (3rd person singular)
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uncoupled,
past participle, past
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uncoupling
present participle
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to release the coupling or link between; disconnect; let go.
to uncouple railroad cars.
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to end (a romantic relationship or marriage).
Their marriage was uncoupled by financial problems.
verb (used without object)
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uncouples,
present (3rd person singular)
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uncoupled,
past participle, past
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uncoupling
present participle
-
to become unfastened; let go.
The glider uncoupled from the tow plane.
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to end a romantic relationship or marriage.
My sister and her boyfriend have uncoupled after ten years together.
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(of a romantic relationship or marriage) to end.
verb
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to disconnect or unfasten or become disconnected or unfastened
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(tr) to set loose; release
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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uncouplesimple
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uncouplessimple
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have uncoupledperfect
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has uncoupledperfect
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am uncouplingprogressive
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are uncouplingprogressive
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is uncouplingprogressive
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have been uncouplingperfect progressive
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has been uncouplingperfect progressive
Past
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uncoupledsimple
-
had uncoupledperfect
-
was uncouplingprogressive
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were uncouplingprogressive
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had been uncouplingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of uncouple
Vocabulary lists containing uncouple
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:
If you uncouple your net worth from your self-worth, navigating finances becomes less sensitive.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 7, 2026
In cancer cells, however, we often observe that subdomains uncouple, resulting in erroneous attachments and chromosome segregation errors.'
From Science Daily ● May 13, 2024
It’s tough to uncouple your want/work/have system from everyone and everything except your own morality, purpose and mental health.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 21, 2021
The shock, embarrassment and sadness of having to cancel my wedding and uncouple my life from my ex’s was just beginning to ease.
From New York Times ● Jul. 23, 2021
He felt the hush which Ml upon the company, and saw Master Twyti wave silently to the lymerer to uncouple his hounds.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
The point is that Stone uncouples it from recognisable timbre, leaving it as pure, contextless sound – a staggering announcement of the universality of beauty.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 10, 2018
Red uncouples the car in which the hoboes are riding and temporarily foils the hawkshaws.
From Time Magazine Archive
In the nick of time, the cowboy uncouples the baggage car in which his girl is held prisoner.
From Time Magazine Archive
Technology at this level uncouples the past from the present.
From The Civilization of Illiteracy by Mihai Nadin
He bends down, and with a strong, quick jerk uncouples the rear car.
From The Transgressors Story of a Great Sin by Francis A. Adams
Levanon has a theory about why the payoffs for advanced degrees have uncoupled: “More degrees chasing fewer of the positions those degrees were meant to unlock.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026
The measurements showed that when iron is scarce, as much as 25% of the proteins that capture light become "uncoupled" from the structures that convert that energy into usable chemical forms.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 12, 2026
Formerly reliable sources of information like seasonal changes in daylight can lose its utility as they become uncoupled.
From Salon ● Nov. 25, 2023
If Smith’s prediction comes true, Cal and the other defectors will be back once football is uncoupled from other college sports.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2023
They sat together in the darkness as their car was uncoupled, put onto a siding, and with a good deal of jerking and jolting coupled to another train.
From "Lupita Mañana" by Patricia Beatty
WSJ: We’ve all got questions but the one that I’m most interested in is this theme that was bubbling at Davos, which was the uncoupling of Europe from the U.S. politically, economically, technologically.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 21, 2026
This effect was even stronger in mice whose mitochondria lacked uncoupling protein 1, suggesting that peroxisomes can step in when mitochondria lose their ability to produce heat.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 9, 2025
A Wall Street–to–Main Street disconnect is not new, but people’s uncoupling of stocks and “the economy” as a living organism has accelerated post-pandemic.
From Slate ● Dec. 6, 2024
But rather than dying, the fibers retracted, uncoupling from the heart muscle.
From Science Magazine ● May 22, 2024
The consequences of uncoupling could indeed be disastrous for any organism from embryo to adult: in time it could lead to the death of the tissue or even of the organism.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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