unpick
Americanverb (used with object)
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unpicks,
present (3rd person singular)
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unpicked,
past participle, past
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unpicking
present participle
verb
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to undo (the stitches) of (a piece of sewing)
-
to unravel or undo (a garment, etc)
-
obsolete to open (a door, lock, etc) by picking
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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unpicksimple
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unpickssimple
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have unpickedperfect
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has unpickedperfect
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am unpickingprogressive
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are unpickingprogressive
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is unpickingprogressive
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have been unpickingperfect progressive
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has been unpickingperfect progressive
Past
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unpickedsimple
-
had unpickedperfect
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was unpickingprogressive
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were unpickingprogressive
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had been unpickingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of unpick
1350–1400 for earlier sense; 1770–80 for current sense; Middle English unpiken to pick (a lock); see un- 2, pick 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.
See Examples For:
“What I really need is a puzzle to unpick, something devilish and twisted.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
If either MP becomes prime minister they will have to decide whether to stick to the current plan or unpick it, further postponing its implementation.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026
That to me is, I think, the most exciting kind of knot to unpick right now.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026
Koh warned that if the ICJ ruled the right to strike was not inherent in the Convention, companies and governments could start to unpick labour deals around the world.
From Barron's ● May 21, 2026
I whinged that it didn't smell of anything, but she pointed out I wasn't the one who had to hoover and unpick the needles from the carpet.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
From disallowed goals, a debated penalty, Ronaldo intrigue and VAR controversy, BBC Sport unpicks a remarkable 105 minutes of drama.
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
Brown said all of this had been traumatic for Aaron, as the more he unpicks the story with his son the worse it gets.
From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026
How the FA unpicks a game that was overshadowed by flash points off the field is not straight-forward.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 17, 2022
This comic book, by a Swedish cartoonist and activist, unpicks all the ways in which women have been encouraged down the centuries to be ashamed both of their bodies and their desires.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 23, 2019
He unpicks compelling patterns: why medical malpractice and harsher judicial rulings cluster in the afternoon; how we pay too much attention to endings; which circumstances favour synchronization in teams.
From Nature ● Jan. 15, 2018
Zimbabwean farmworker Aaron Majatamhe was heading home at sunset after a shift in one of South Africa's top fruit-producing regions, where bushes laden with bright unpicked citrus stood in rows.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
Thousands of positions go unfilled, which means apples go unpicked and tomatoes rot in fields.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026
Some of this will likely have to be unpicked to improve the situation in qualifying.
From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2026
But the Surge’s bylaws are clear that no nit be left unpicked, and so we have to quibble with his framing.
From Slate ● Jan. 17, 2026
Vedna had even unpicked his clan skin from his old jerkin, and sewn it to the parka.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
Turmoil in bond markets is unpicking the improvements in affordability.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
Just three weeks after becoming prime minister, Andy Burnham is already unpicking a key piece of legislation passed under his predecessor Sir Keir Starmer.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
The Wolves retook the lead eight minutes later, Jeanuel Belocian unpicking the Leipzig defence with a simple pass for Svanberg to score.
From Barron's ● Feb. 15, 2026
"So the white room, for me, was a way of unpicking that."
From BBC ● Dec. 26, 2023
I once did a piece of unpicking like this for mamma, and she didn't explain properly, or something—at all events, I took out a great deal too much, so she——" "Don't call your mamma 'she.'
From The Beth Book Being a Study of the Life of Elizabeth Caldwell Maclure, a Woman of Genius by Sarah Grand
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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.
