unwind

American  

[uhn-wahynd] / ʌnˈwaɪnd /

verb (used with object)

• unwinds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• unwound,
  past participle,  past
• unwinding
  present participle

1. to undo or loosen from or as if from a coiled condition.

   to unwind a rolled bandage; to unwind a coiled rope.

2. to reduce the tension of; relax.

   to unwind a person with a drink.

3. to disentangle or disengage; untwist.

   to unwind one's legs from around the stool.

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verb (used without object)

• unwinds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• unwound,
  past participle,  past
• unwinding
  present participle

1. to become unwound.

2. to become relieved of tension; relax.

   After work we can have a drink and unwind.

unwind British  

/ ʌnˈwaɪnd /

verb

1. to slacken, undo, or unravel or cause to slacken, undo, or unravel

2. (tr) to disentangle

3. to make or become relaxed

   he finds it hard to unwind after a busy day at work

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unwinder
  noun
• unwindable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• unwinding
  present
• unwound
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• unwind
  simple
• unwinds
  simple
• have unwound
  perfect
• has unwound
  perfect
• am unwinding
  progressive
• are unwinding
  progressive
• is unwinding
  progressive
• have been unwinding
  perfect progressive
• has been unwinding
  perfect progressive

Past

• unwound
  simple
• had unwound
  perfect
• was unwinding
  progressive
• were unwinding
  progressive
• had been unwinding
  perfect progressive

Future

• will unwind
  simple
• will have unwound
  perfect
• will be unwinding
  progressive
• will have been unwinding
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of unwind

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English onwinden; see un- ², wind ²

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Explanation

The literal meaning of the verb unwind is exactly what it sounds like — the opposite of "wind," or twist. But when someone says they need to unwind, they mean that they need to relax. When you come inside on a cold, snowy day, you might first unwind the scarf from around your neck, loosening and untwisting it. If you then grab a cup of hot chocolate and put your feet up on the coffee table, you’ll feel yourself start to unwind, or become less tense. Unwind has been in use since the fourteenth century, but the figurative meaning of “to relax” dates only from the mid-twentieth century.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

unwind unwinds unwound unwinding

“Courtney Love wanted to book a bunch of time,” but also wanted a place to unwind outside the studio.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026

Situational was up about 270% for calendar year 2026 through May before it lost billions of dollars in a swift unwind this summer, after the end of the university’s fiscal year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

But Buffett isn’t the only legendary investor known to unwind with unexpected diversions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

Trying to unwind the carbonized rolls frequently reduced them to piles of ash, eventually prompting Italian authorities to stop the practice.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026

Maybe a kitchen detour was just what we needed to unwind after the insane adventures we’d just been on.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

While chip stocks were bouncing on Tuesday and software stocks were ceding some ground, neither move unwinds the extent of Monday’s performance.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

Wendy Finerman unwinds by baking late at night.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026

Should profit taking begin, a sharp pullback would be in the cards as extreme call demand unwinds, says SpotGamma.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 1, 2026

While some F1 stars like Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc choose to race online in their spare time, Häkkinen unwinds by riding horses.

From BBC ● May 21, 2026

Out in the gardens, the daylight unwinds from the trees and still von Rumpel waits.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

Yields began to climb anew in the summer of 2023, as traders unwound recession bets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026

Last week, Trump Media also unwound deals with Crypto.com to launch a prediction-market feature on Truth Social and create a stand-alone digital-asset treasury.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Before the conflict, markets were pricing in interest-rate cuts, which have since unwound, but they said the Fed could turn more dovish on signs of inflation clearly moving lower in the months ahead.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026

South Korean stocks suffered one of their steepest plunges on Wednesday, with the blood-letting that has battered chip firms over the past month deepening as nervous investors unwound their bets on the AI boom.

From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026

She was wearing a sand-hued wrap, a kind of sari, except it was looser than that, as if it had just been unwound and then only casually repinned.

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee

“Tightening policy now and unwinding this later would then introduce unnecessary volatility in fiscal settings,” economists at Investec wrote in a note to clients.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

Despite these dynamics, GM reported third-quarter profits of $3.3 billion, more than double last year's level, which was marred by one-time costs connected to unwinding electric vehicle investments.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026

They also see Europe as a potential diversifier in global portfolios in the event of the AI trade unwinding further, as regions less exposed to the theme could provide some protection.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

Manus in September said it had resumed independent operations after unwinding the Meta acquisition.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

She was winding a strand of her long, dark hair around her finger, winding and unwinding it again and again.

From "The City of Ember" by Jeanne DuPrau

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Related Words

• loosen
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