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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But in the years that followed, Syed's judicial game of table tennis continued until he was finally freed from prison in 2022.—
Erin Jensen,
USA Today,
19 Sep. 2025
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The goal is to free up your team’s bandwidth for the strategic relationship work that only humans can do.—
Shawn Pierce,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Some argue the practice is riding on the coattails of Canada’s historical ties to countries such as the Netherlands, which was liberated by Canadian troops during World War II and where Canadians are particularly appreciated.—
Vivian Song,
CNN Money,
18 Sep. 2025
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If a young Parisienne in the nineteen-twenties could feel liberated by the loose tailoring and comfortable fabrics of Coco Chanel’s new suits, Birkin’s generation wanted something even less restrictive.—
Anahid Nersessian,
New Yorker,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Authorities have not released information about victim conditions or the total number of people injured in the attack.—
Adeola Adeosun,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Sep. 2025
-
Morgan said the victim suffered stab wounds to his hands, chest, lung and abdomen, and was treated and released.—
Jason Green,
Mercury News,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Juventus managed to come from behind to rescue a 4-4 draw against visiting Borussia Dortmund thanks to a late equalizer by Lloyd Kelly (90+6’).—
Manuel Veth,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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Lions Tigers & Bears’ mission is to rescue and care for big cats and exotic animals, with a team of veterinarians, groundskeepers, administrative staff and approximately 300 volunteers.—
Carlos Rico,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
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After being stuck on a boss, eternally forced to run back and replay swaths of danger for just another slim shot at winning, overcoming most challenges feels less like triumph and more like someone’s mercifully loosened the belt around your neck.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Rinse the seeds in cold water to help loosen the strands.—
Johna Burdeos,
Health,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Some of the cattle roaming the marsh are rumored to be the feral descendants of herds emancipated two decades ago by Hurricane Katrina, which made landfall about five miles upriver.—
Nathaniel Rich,
Harpers Magazine,
20 Aug. 2025
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The federal government's few attempts to transition the recently emancipated into the postwar economy were inadequate, historians believe.—
Andrea Riquier,
USA Today,
8 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Biglari’s core demands were to stop opening new stores entirely, eliminate the development team to save money, and focus exclusively on improving existing store operations rather than expansion.—
Lily Mae Lazarus,
Fortune,
18 Sep. 2025
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One paper in August estimates that Covid vaccines saved more than 2 million lives, mostly among older adults, worldwide between 2020 and October 2024.—
Annika Kim Constantino,
CNBC,
18 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unchain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unchain. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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