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unstep

American  
[uhn-step] / ʌnˈstɛp /

verb (used with object)

unstepped, unstepping
  1. to lift from its step, as a mast.


unstep British  
/ ʌnˈstɛp /

verb

  1. (tr) nautical to remove (a mast) from its step

"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

Etymology

Origin of unstep

First recorded in 1850–55; un- 2 + step


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:

This is used to unstep and eventually restep the mast.

From Time Magazine Archive

They had only to unstep its mast and lie flat in the cup of its soggy platform and they could not be spied half a mile away.

From Where the Pavement Ends by John Russell

“You must look out sharp to shift the sheet when I tell you, and unstep the mast, if necessary, the very moment I say, mind!”

From Picked up at Sea The Gold Miners of Minturne Creek by John C. (John Conroy) Hutcheson

And get this boat out of the way and unstep her mast!

From Three Dramas by R. Farquharson (Robert Farquharson) Sharp

“Now,” he continued, “if we lower the sail and unstep the mast, we may remain here as long as we please, undetected.”

From Two Gallant Sons of Devon A Tale of the Days of Queen Bess by Edward S. Hodgson

When they unstepped their sweeps, lifted out their shells, put on their clothes, the Bachelors' Barge Club of Philadelphia had won the Barnes trophy for the club championship.

From Time Magazine Archive

He unstepped the mast and furled the sail and tied it.

From "The Old Man and The Sea" by Ernest Hemingway

He unstepped the mast and sat down again.

From The Northern Iron by George A. Birmingham

Close in now Bompard let go the sheet and they unstepped the mast, the boat rocking in the trough of the swell.

From The Beach of Dreams by H. De Vere (Henry De Vere) Stacpoole

There was a low mast on the “Farnum's” platform deck, a mast that could be unstepped almost in an instant when going below surface.

From The Submarine Boys and the Middies by Victor G. Durham

This we accomplished, and lowering our sail, and unstepping our mast, we got close in under the trees.

From The Wanderers Adventures in the Wilds of Trinidad and Orinoco by Perat

We should fetch it with one tack, and by unstepping our masts very probably the boat will not be seen, or our hut either, unless the Frenchmen narrowly examine the island.”

From The Rival Crusoes by William Henry Giles Kingston

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