unlatch
Americanverb (used with object)
-
unlatches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
unlatched,
past participle, past
-
unlatching
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
unlatches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
unlatched,
past participle, past
-
unlatching
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
unlatchsimple
-
unlatchessimple
-
have unlatchedperfect
-
has unlatchedperfect
-
am unlatchingprogressive
-
are unlatchingprogressive
-
is unlatchingprogressive
-
have been unlatchingperfect progressive
-
has been unlatchingperfect progressive
Past
-
unlatchedsimple
-
had unlatchedperfect
-
was unlatchingprogressive
-
were unlatchingprogressive
-
had been unlatchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of unlatch
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:
Tesla is facing a fresh investigation from U.S. automotive-safety regulators over concerns that it may be difficult to unlatch the doors of some Model 3 sedans in the case of an emergency.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 24, 2025
The cages were padlocked, a measure to keep the birds from figuring out how to unlatch their enclosures and escape.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 10, 2023
During the workweek, regulars slide in to occupy one of 10 seats at the bar at Lynn’s Motel on State Route 115 in Effort almost as soon as the doors unlatch at 4 p.m.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 26, 2023
"If you open this door and unlatch this thing and you slide this over, you'd look down in there and in between a bunch of nails you'd find my name," she says.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2020
I made myself walk across the grass to the little house and unlatch the door.
From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones
Even without a stage, that is theater: a performance that unlatches the mind.
From New York Times ● Jan. 12, 2021
At that moment, I grabbed the girl around the torso and pulled her away from the cage and it unlatches from her claw.
From BBC ● Mar. 10, 2019
She unlatches her purse, clutches his slippers, slides them into the dark can, hides them between bags of trash.
From Salon ● Feb. 23, 2013
Johanna unlatches my locket, studying the pictures of Gale, Prim, and my mother.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
He rings #2 and a returning buzz echoes from inside and the door unlatches.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
He unlatched himself so he could briefly get up and hand the bag to the sick passenger, who promptly vomited in it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Tesla has issued a software update for more than 1.8 million vehicles in the US to fix a faulty notification system for unlatched bonnets, also known as hoods in the US.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2024
That can cause it to malfunction and stay unlatched even when the hood is closed.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 28, 2022
Taylor Harris rolled into her parking spot at the bottom of a hill and unlatched her son from his car seat.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 14, 2022
“Your father probably got fed up because Safa unlatched a neighbor’s chicken coop again. You know you’re the only one who can keep up with her.”
From "Amal Unbound" by Aisha Saeed
An "extremely intelligent" bear that injured four people in northern Japan remains at large as of Friday, after apparently unlatching a window while evading capture and turning on a water tap, officials said.
From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026
Activists “liberated” captive mink as they have for years, sneaking onto mink farms in Utah and Idaho and unlatching the cages of 2,000 mink, who fled into the moonlight.
From New York Times ● Jan. 19, 2022
The crew undocked from the station on schedule, first retracting cables that supplied power from the space station, then unlatching 12 hooks that had held the two together for more than two months.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 1, 2020
Then he heard a sound no paramedic ever wants to hear: the click of a patient’s shoulder harness unlatching.
From New York Times ● Jul. 8, 2015
“Oh, I can’t afford any of this,” she says, unlatching the necklace and laying it down all nice.
From "Clean Getaway" by Nic Stone
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
