as in to free
to set free (as from slavery or confinement)
activists for animal rights who would like to unchain zoo animals and return them to the wild
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Recent Examples of unchain
When Henson refused to unchain herself from the fence, California Highway Patrol arrested her.
—
Kate Talerico, The Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2024
Max eventually unchains himself and helps Furiosa in her quest to free the cult leader's wives, gaining mutual respect along the way.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 3 July 2024
Van Gogh had unchained it from its age-old funereal associations and reinvented it as a tour de force of emotional connection and nurturance.
—Deborah Solomon, New York Times, 11 May 2023
The Shambala Center would unchain our brains Through mindfulness, yoga, and chanted refrains.
—Nate Anderson, Ars Technica, 1 Apr. 2023
On Wednesday, the rescuers carefully lifted the shed enough to reach Bubbles and unchain the dog.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE.com, 3 Sep. 2021
The feds give an official exemption to Nuro, a company working on small self-driving cars—a sign that regulators are willing to unchain autonomous vehicles from the old rules.
—Aarian Marshall, Wired, 9 Feb. 2020
Police say the three protesters had the ability to unchain themselves from the equipment but refused.
—USA TODAY, 13 Sep. 2019
This most recent stretch includes half of his six big league homers, moments in which Naylor’s unchained enthusiasm for the game has teammates tripping over themselves to get out of his way.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Aug. 2019
Kate Talerico, The Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2024
Max eventually unchains himself and helps Furiosa in her quest to free the cult leader's wives, gaining mutual respect along the way.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 3 July 2024
Van Gogh had unchained it from its age-old funereal associations and reinvented it as a tour de force of emotional connection and nurturance.
—Deborah Solomon, New York Times, 11 May 2023
The Shambala Center would unchain our brains Through mindfulness, yoga, and chanted refrains.
—Nate Anderson, Ars Technica, 1 Apr. 2023
On Wednesday, the rescuers carefully lifted the shed enough to reach Bubbles and unchain the dog.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE.com, 3 Sep. 2021
The feds give an official exemption to Nuro, a company working on small self-driving cars—a sign that regulators are willing to unchain autonomous vehicles from the old rules.
—Aarian Marshall, Wired, 9 Feb. 2020
Police say the three protesters had the ability to unchain themselves from the equipment but refused.
—USA TODAY, 13 Sep. 2019
This most recent stretch includes half of his six big league homers, moments in which Naylor’s unchained enthusiasm for the game has teammates tripping over themselves to get out of his way.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Aug. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unchain
Verb
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The Dolphins’ two options would be releasing him (which wouldn’t free up significant cap space until after June 1) or keeping him but with terms of the contract adjusted to save Miami money and cap space.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
4 Mar. 2025
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The inmates took over, killing guards and freeing everyone; Trent helped himself to a dead guard’s uniform, radio and weapon (as well as the knife sticking out of his chest), and used it to pose as a law-enforcement official helping manage the chaos as people flocked to Paradise in their cars.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
4 Mar. 2025
Verb
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That was really liberating at the time for women and looked scary to men.—
A Martínez,
NPR,
7 Mar. 2025
-
This might fly in the face of everything a business leader has been taught about being an expert, but trust me, the results of this kind of thinking are liberating.—
Christian Davies FCSD,
Forbes,
7 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
In 2023, Jaar released Intiha, an abstract collaboration with the composer Ali Sethi, and last year, the Chilean-American producer released Piedras 1 & 2, two ambitious LPs tackling Chilean history and Palestinian erasure.—
Eric Renner Brown,
Billboard,
27 Feb. 2025
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Common Sense Media has released a new report that looks at the 2024 media use of children ages 0 to 8, pointing to some of the challenges faced by those educating this generation.—
Peter Greene,
Forbes,
27 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Dozens of times a year, a governor will appeal to the president to be rescued from a disaster.—
Kelly McKinney,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Mar. 2025
-
Chappy, the gray baby seal that was rescued from downtown New Haven, Conn., has died due to gastrointestinal issues.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
5 Mar. 2025
Verb
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The month when winter’s icy grip starts to loosen, and the promise of spring is just around the corner.—
Matt Rozo,
The Mercury News,
28 Feb. 2025
-
The firings come as Meta is undergoing sweeping changes, including loosening restrictions on online speech, scaling back diversity initiatives, rolling back its fact-checking program, and aligning more closely with former President Donald Trump’s administration.—
Bruce Gil,
Quartz,
27 Feb. 2025
Verb
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In February 1991, the child star emancipated herself at the age of 14 and moved into an apartment of her own.—
Nicole Briese,
People.com,
22 Feb. 2025
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Under this framework, any slaves coming voluntarily to Union lines were effectively emancipated.—
Scott Spillman,
The New Yorker,
29 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Find even more tech deals at Walmart today, and keep on saving!—
Shubham Yewale,
PCMAG,
5 Mar. 2025
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In addition, remote workers and people who are looking to save money have found benefits and freedom while living in a van.—
Patrick Connolly,
Orlando Sentinel,
5 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unchain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unchain. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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