unthread

American  

[uhn-thred] / ʌnˈθrɛd /

verb (used with object)

1. to draw out or take out the thread from.

   to unthread a sewing machine.

2. to thread one's way through or out of, as a densely wooded forest.

3. to disentangle; separate out of a raveled or confused condition.

   to unthread a mystery.

---

unthread British  

/ ʌnˈθrɛd /

verb

1. to draw out the thread or threads from (a needle, etc)

2. to disentangle

---

Etymology

Origin of unthread

First recorded in 1585–95; un- ² + thread

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

unthread

I’ve been asking people in and out of government to unthread these questions.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 29, 2023

You can usually unthread and reattach everything by hand.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 30, 2021

I now feel very strongly about the length of my index fingers — enough that I will sometimes shyly unthread my hand from my girlfriend’s as we walk down the street.

From New York Times ● Nov. 24, 2018

The more he broke, the easier it was to unthread the fence, and soon he’d created a hole big enough to drive through.

From "The House of the Scorpion" by Nancy Farmer

Your wisest scholars lose themselves in trying to unthread the mazes and mysteries of those incomprehensible depths of diabolical worship and intertwined beauty and honor, now known only from trebly diminished mythologic reflection.

From The Continental Monthly, Vol. 1, No. 1, January 1862 Devoted to Literature and National Policy by Various

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---