undo
Americanverb (used with object)
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to reverse the doing of; cause to be as if never done.
Murder once done can never be undone.
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to do away with; erase; efface.
to undo the havoc done by the storm.
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to bring to ruin or disaster; destroy.
In the end his lies undid him.
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to unfasten by releasing.
to undo a gate; to undo a button.
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to untie or loose (a knot, rope, etc.).
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to open (a package, wrapping, etc.).
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Archaic. to explain; interpret.
verb
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(also intr) to untie, unwrap, or open or become untied, unwrapped, etc
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to reverse the effects of
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to cause the downfall of
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obsolete to explain or solve
Other Word Forms
- undoable adjective
- undoer noun
Etymology
Origin of undo
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English undōn; cognate with Dutch ontdoen; un- 2, do 1
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.
"There's still time to undo the wrong and hopefully wiser counsels will prevail," Gavaskar added.
From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026
Just last month, a superior court judge in Santa Barbara County said prior intervention by the federal government wasn’t enough to undo an earlier order that kept the pipeline shut down.
From Barron's • Mar. 14, 2026
Jeremy Keller Beecher told the judge the prosecution team’s efforts to undo Zambrano’s detention “were unsuccessful.”
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 24, 2026
“And so those two things combined would make me undo what I did in December.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 19, 2026
Each time she did it, she shook her head and started to undo it.
From "The Night Diary" by Veera Hiranandani
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.
