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unloose

[uhn-loos]
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verb (used with object), un·loosed, un·loos·ing.
  1. to loosen or relax (the grasp, hold, fingers, etc.).
  2. to let loose or set free; free from restraint.
  3. to undo or untie (a fastening, knot, etc.); unfasten.
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Origin of unloose

1325–75; Middle English unloosen; see un-2, loose
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

unblockunloosenunbindslipunwraplooseloosenfreedisengageunbuttonunlockunclaspuntiedisentanglereleaseunravelunfastenuncloseunfixunstop

Examples from the Web for unloose

Historical Examples

  • After the captain left him, he struggled hard to unloose the cords which bound him.

    Brave and Bold

    Horatio Alger

  • I have a large, hundred-ounce poke of dust, and I unloose the thong.

    The Trail of '98

    Robert W. Service

  • Shirley would untie the knots or cut the rope or get someone to unloose her.

    Rosemary

    Josephine Lawrence

  • Some of them had it tied up behind like women, and now proceeded to unloose it.

    The Bertrams

    Anthony Trollope

  • I made a feeble attempt to unloose her hands and draw myself up.

    A Pessimist

    Robert Timsol

British Dictionary definitions for unloose

unloose

unloosen

verb (tr)
  1. to set free; release
  2. to loosen or relax (a hold, grip, etc)
  3. to unfasten or untie
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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

Word Origin and History for unloose

v.

late 14c., "to set free," from un- (2), used here emphatically, + loose. Related: Unloosed; unloosing.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper