unbar
Americanverb (used with object)
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unbars,
present (3rd person singular)
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unbarred,
past participle, past
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unbarring
present participle
verb
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to take away a bar or bars from
-
to unfasten bars, locks, etc, from (a door); open
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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unbarsimple
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unbarssimple
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have unbarredperfect
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has unbarredperfect
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am unbarringprogressive
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are unbarringprogressive
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is unbarringprogressive
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have been unbarringperfect progressive
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has been unbarringperfect progressive
Past
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unbarredsimple
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had unbarredperfect
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was unbarringprogressive
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were unbarringprogressive
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had been unbarringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of unbar
First recorded in 1300–50, unbar is from the Middle English word unbarren. See un- 2, bar 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:
Claudius has made himself a monarch again, standing at the head of a shrieking horde of desperate peasantry who believe he can unbar the door to that heavenly place.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 11, 2025
In that era, debt was still punishable by imprisonment, and prison gates were almost ready to unbar in hospitable welcome to Marguerite and D'Orsay.
From Superwomen by Albert Payson Terhune
He didn’t look as if the task were an agreeable one and the lads placed themselves beside him as he advanced and with trembling hands tried to unbar the door.
From Dorothy's House Party by Evelyn Raymond
“She is within and safe; Natalya is with her,” came Yossof’s quavering voice, as he labored to unbar the gates.
From The Red Symbol by John Ironside
"I'll have to jump over and unbar it," said Paul.
From Three Young Ranchmen or, Daring Adventures in the Great West by Ralph Bonehill
The book’s final moments are breathless, if suspiciously flimsy—it isn’t until the very last sentence that Monk unbars “the great gate” and is freed.
From Slate ● Mar. 22, 2017
Will the sun forget to streak Eastern skies with amber ray, When the dusky shades to break He unbars the gates of day?
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
Hitherto, whenever, "I've wandered in dreams," it has generally been my unlucky fate to lose all distinct recollection of them before "The morn unbars the gates of light."
From Pencil Sketches or, Outlines of Character and Manners by Eliza Leslie
It was not in such a fashion that I had thought to see my mission to Canaples accomplished; I had dreamt of gratitude, and gratitude unbars the door to much.
From The Suitors of Yvonne: being a portion of the memoirs of the Sieur Gaston de Luynes by Rafael Sabatini
Soon as to Ilion's topmost tower they come, And awful reach the high Palladian dome, Antenor's consort, fair Theano, waits As Pallas' priestess, and unbars the gates.
From The Iliad by Alexander Pope
As a result, its classification was changed from unbarred spiral galaxy to barred spiral galaxy.
From Salon ● Apr. 23, 2022
Eventually, we decided that my father would not recover, and so, instead of continuing to try to stave off death, we unbarred the door and began to wait.
From The New Yorker ● Feb. 5, 2017
In both barred and unbarred spiral galaxies, we observe a range of different shapes.
From Textbooks ● Oct. 13, 2016
Handel’s vocal writing can be fiercely demanding, nowhere more so than in the Angel’s opening aria, “Be unbarred, ye gates of Avernus,” in which Liv Redpath, a soprano, displayed lovely tone and fine agility.
From New York Times ● Dec. 9, 2014
They were so wrought and poised upon their huge hinges, posts of steel driven into the living stone, that when unbarred they could be moved with a light thrust of the arms, noiselessly.
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
Knees, shoulders, elbows, buttocks and teeth collide with one another, fleetingly unbarring a glimpse into deeper space before they slide closed again.
From Slate ● Sep. 25, 2011
He could not get help from outside, even if he had someone whom he could trust, without the unbarring of doors, and considerable risk of detection.
From The Strand Magazine, Volume V, Issue 29, May 1893 An Illustrated Monthly by Various
And as soon as their parents had gone to sleep, he got up, put on his coat, and, unbarring the back door, went out.
From My Book of Favorite Fairy Tales by Jennie Harbour
She had come to the first barn now, and, unbarring the door, went in.
From The Good Comrade by Anna Whelan Betts
They got enough, however, to realise that he demanded the unbarring of the door, and that he both threatened and promised protection to whoever was within.
From The Strange Case of Cavendish by Randall Parrish
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.
