unlock

[ uhn-lok ]

/ ʌnˈlɒk /

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See synonyms for: unlock / unlocked on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to undo the lock of (a door, chest, etc.), especially with a key.

to open or release by or as if by undoing a lock.

to open (anything firmly closed or joined): to unlock the jaws.

to lay open; disclose: to unlock the secrets of one's heart.

verb (used without object)

to become unlocked.

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Origin of unlock

1350–1400; Middle English unloken;see un-², lock¹

OTHER WORDS FROM unlock

un·lock·a·ble, adjective

Words nearby unlock

unlistenable, unlit, unlive, unload, unloanable, unlock, unlocked, unlooked, unlooked-for, unloose, unloosen

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use unlock in a sentence

The helmet case unlocks when the user selects “start ride,” but the power to the moped won’t come on until the selfie has been submitted.
Electric moped startup Revel returns to New York with helmet selfie, other in-app safety features|Kirsten Korosec|August 27, 2020|TechCrunch
Most often, that means police and security forces unlocking phones of criminal suspects—a category that now includes pro-democracy advocates in Hong Kong.
Israeli phone hacking company faces court fight over sales to Hong Kong|Patrick O'Neill|August 25, 2020|MIT Technology Review
For advertisers, particularly those with e-commerce businesses, ads on Facebook not only create sales potential, they increasingly unlock it as new e-commerce features are added like the Shops in May.
As online shopping intensifies, e-commerce marketers are becoming increasingly reliant on Facebook’s ads|Seb Joseph|August 25, 2020|Digiday
Now based on your goals and audience type, choose your strategies wisely and start unlocking the true potential of LinkedIn for your business.
What will make your brand stand out on LinkedIn in 2020?|Harikrishna Kundariya|August 12, 2020|Search Engine Watch

Like, fun stuff is for after homework, and doing homework is how you unlock doing the fun stuff.
What’s A Unique Homework Routine That Works?|Candice Bradley|July 15, 2020|Everything After Z
Green-Wood has its own catacombs, which grounds keepers will unlock for tour groups.
Brooklyn’s Gangster Graveyard|Nina Strochlic|October 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With my back turned, he entered the combination to unlock the door, which was fortified by more than a foot of reinforced steel.
Writing a Novel: Even Making It Up Requires Research|Ridley Pearson|July 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The move would unlock EU funding, more speaking time, and seats on committees.
How Marine Le Pen and France’s Ultra-Right Won the Day|Tracy McNicoll|May 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Best recalls a grieving father confiding that a visit let him unlock the emotional door trapping his family in grief.
David Best Creates a Temple Made of Memories Outside San Francisco|Debra A. Klein|February 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But there was never an easy way for the company to unlock that value, or for investors to understand precisely how much Yahoo!
Yahoo! Poised to Cash In on Initial Public Offering of China E-Commerce Giant Alibaba|William O’Connor|September 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
She instructed Bessie that prayer, good reading, and meditation are the keys to use to unlock God's great storehouse of blessings.
The value of a praying mother|Isabel C. Byrum
You must search for the secret springs that govern his actions and for the master key that will unlock his heart.
The value of a praying mother|Isabel C. Byrum
Then he made the boy unlock the cell door and Jim slipped out, gagged the kid, and walked out of the jail.
Mystery Ranch|Arthur Chapman
My name and my influence are a key to unlock every door; my hand can draw aside the curtain of every delight.
The Everlasting Arms|Joseph Hocking
For she had that magic key which Thyrsis himself did not possess, she could unlock the treasure-chambers of Corydon's soul.
Love's Pilgrimage|Upton Sinclair

British Dictionary definitions for unlock

unlock

/ (ʌnˈlɒk) /

verb

(tr) to unfasten (a lock, door, etc)

(tr) to open, release, or let loose

(tr) to disclose or provide the key tounlock a puzzle

(intr) to become unlocked

Derived forms of unlock

unlockable, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

unlock

Origin of unlock

OTHER WORDS FROM unlock

Words nearby unlock

Words related to unlock

How to use unlock in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for unlock

Derived forms of unlock