unload
Americanverb (used with object)
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unloads,
present (3rd person singular)
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unloaded,
past participle, past
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unloading
present participle
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to take the load from; remove the cargo or freight from.
to unload a truck; to unload a cart.
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to remove or discharge (a load, group of people, etc.).
to unload passengers.
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to remove the charge from (a firearm).
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to relieve of anything burdensome, oppressive, etc..
He unloaded his responsibilities.
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to get rid of (goods, shares of stock, etc.) by sale in large quantities.
verb (used without object)
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unloads,
present (3rd person singular)
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unloaded,
past participle, past
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unloading
present participle
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to unload something.
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Informal. to relieve one's stress by talking, confessing, or the like.
verb
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to remove a load or cargo from (a ship, lorry, etc)
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to discharge (cargo, freight, etc)
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(tr) to relieve of a burden or troubles
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(tr) to give vent to (anxiety, troubles, etc)
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(tr) to get rid of or dispose of (esp surplus goods)
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(tr) to remove the charge of ammunition from (a firearm)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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unloadsimple
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unloadssimple
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have unloadedperfect
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has unloadedperfect
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am unloadingprogressive
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are unloadingprogressive
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is unloadingprogressive
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have been unloadingperfect progressive
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has been unloadingperfect progressive
Past
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unloadedsimple
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had unloadedperfect
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was unloadingprogressive
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were unloadingprogressive
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had been unloadingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of unload
Explanation
To unload is to remove cargo from a vehicle or shipping carton. Unload can also mean to discharge or get rid of something, or to get something off your chest. A clothing store might unload (remove) a hundred cartons from the delivery truck, and then unload (unpack) shirts and pants from the cartons. If a carton of clothes is imperfect, the store might send them back or unload (dispossess themselves of) them by selling them cheaply to a factory-seconds outlet. Then the store manager, depending on her mood, might unload on (give a tongue-lashing to) the manufacturer for shipping shoddy products.
Vocabulary lists containing unload
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:
They continue to offer incentives and even price reductions in some markets as they try to unload their housing inventories and counter tepid demand.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
He created off-balance sheet entities to unload the debt and took personal stakes in them, allowing Fasto to sit on both sides of the negotiation and pocket millions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
Bezos plans to unload 15 million ‘founder shares’ he acquired back in 1994 under a prescheduled trading plan.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
She says they would have been heading for the southern coast of Myanmar, where they would unload their human cargo to smaller boats to put them back on dry land.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Finally the barge docked at Chattana to unload.
From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat
She enters a spotless kitchen, unloads a bag of groceries, and unwraps a frozen pizza before sliding it in the oven.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
He hauls buckets of feed into the back of his ATV and unloads them in a pen crowded with cattle that outweigh him many times over.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 15, 2026
The crypto selloff has deepened as Wall Street unloads risk-on assets amid concerns over the stretched valuations of artificial-intelligence stocks.
From Barron's ● Nov. 14, 2025
Jose Campos, co-manager of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing nursery unloads four pots of native California asters for planting on the crossing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2025
She unloads a tray of them from the delivery cart, reserving two to eat later.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
During the call, Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes unloaded on the agency.
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2026
Fox also unloaded its regional cable sports networks — a savvy move before that business cratered.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2026
At the train station in Van, couples and families with children arrived in taxis and unloaded their suitcases before boarding the 9 p.m. train that would whisk them overnight to Tehran.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
The listing comes one year after the actress successfully unloaded another renovated property in Montecito, Calif., for $16.8 million—although she earned a much lower profit than she had initially hoped.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
And once on shore, when the crew unloaded the nets, they would sometimes find something else.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
Desperate for cash to meet margin calls from lenders, he considered unloading a $3.5 billion stake in Anthropic before deciding to dump most of his public portfolio instead.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
A spokesperson said staff followed the correct procedure in unloading the waste as soon as they became aware of the fire.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
"With this unauthorised unloading of equipment, the company has really not improved its chances with the Greenland authorities," said Anne Merrild, a professor at Aalborg University and Arctic specialist.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
The private-equity industry is still grappling with unloading a glut of companies bought years ago, and the pace of new fundraising has slowed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
One day I’m going by the fish co-op when a big sport-fishing boat is unloading.
From "The Young Man and the Sea" by Rodman Philbrick
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.
