unspool

verb

un·​spool ˌən-ˈspül How to pronounce unspool (audio)
unspooled; unspooling; unspools
Synonyms of unspoolnext

transitive verb

1
: to unwind from a spool
unspool the cable
2
: to execute or present artfully or gracefully
unspooled a jump shot
unspooling an intricate tale

intransitive verb

: to be presented or revealed on or as if on a movie screen

Examples of unspool in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This sophomore outing will unspool over the show's internal timespan of four years, with its dozen chapters cut into four three-episode slices. — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 10 Mar. 2025 Critics, including the business community, argue the bill needlessly unspools a decades-old agreement between labor and business. — Nick Coltrain, The Denver Post, 4 Jan. 2025 Set to unspool the week after Universal’s M3GAN spin-off Soulm8te, Mutiny‘s opening weekend is currently unoccupied by other titles. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 19 Feb. 2025 And an entirely different argument begins to unspool. — Rebekah Taussig, TIME, 19 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for unspool

Word History

First Known Use

1940, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of unspool was in 1940

Rhymes for unspool

See All Rhymes for unspool

Browse Nearby Words

unspool
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Unspool.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unspool. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on unspool

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for unspool

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

More Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

What do SCOTUS, POTUS, and FLOTUS mean?

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular Features

See More

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

What do SCOTUS, POTUS, and FLOTUS mean?

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
dog-in-disguise
Rhyme Disguise Quiz Pair up words that look different but sound alike.
See All