as in downfall
something that is the cause of one's ultimate failure or loss of life
an intractable drug habit proved to be her sad undoing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in paralyzing
to deprive of courage or confidence
the sudden shriek undid the campers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unfastening
to disengage the knotted parts of
undo a tangled shoelace
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in bothering
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy
the mere mention of the home invasion still had the power to undo her
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of undoing
Gabrielle Bellot, Literary Hub, 27 Feb. 2026
Was banishing Natalie Anderson Tara’s ultimate undoing?
—Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Feb. 2026
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 15 Feb. 2026
Others are still undoing pandemic-era hiring bonanzas, and some blame layoffs on AI’s productivity.
—Molly Liebergall, Fortune, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for undoing
Noun
But Open, Heaven also courses with youth’s great agony, the cruelty that learning to love should be inexorably followed by learning to grieve its undoing.
—Gabrielle Bellot, Literary Hub, 27 Feb. 2026
Was banishing Natalie Anderson Tara’s ultimate undoing?
—Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Feb. 2026
Verb
But the House version — HB 217 — doesn’t come close to undoing the damage.
—Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 15 Feb. 2026
Others are still undoing pandemic-era hiring bonanzas, and some blame layoffs on AI’s productivity.
—Molly Liebergall, Fortune, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for undoing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for undoing
Noun
-
The beginning of the downfall of Andrew, everyone agrees, can be traced to that fateful 2019 Newsnight interview where Andrew confirmed his connection with Epstein.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
15 Mar. 2026
-
Point guard Pat Bala scored 13 points San Juan Hills contributed to its downfall with 19 runovers and by giving up 15 offensive rebounds to the Gators.—
Steve Fryer,
Oc Register,
14 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
At age 14, Arias was caught in the crossfire of a shootout between rival gangs, paralyzing him from the waist down.—
Kayla Hayempour,
NBC news,
8 Mar. 2026
-
In a region where weather swings from paralyzing ice storms to scorching summers, these elements carry weight.—
Mary Grace Granados
Special Contributor,
Dallas Morning News,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Jamal Murray’s right shoulder was bothering him during a 1-for-14 outing Saturday.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
15 Mar. 2026
-
Mass incarceration has led to a fast-growing bloc of citizens who either are legally barred from voting or have just stopped bothering.—
Kevin B. Smith,
The Conversation,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction famously took on the traditional ideas of the hero’s journey and destruction in storytelling, arguing that the earliest human tool was not a weapon, but a container, such as a bag, a basket, or even a net, designed for gathering and storing food.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Mar. 2026
-
While humans have learned to harness the wind to create clean energy, there’s no way to stop hurricane-force winds or tornadoes that cause destruction.—
Sheryl De Vore,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Clumsiness notwithstanding, bringing a criminal case against a journalist who was reporting on a protest is an authoritarian tactic—a means of frightening the press away from uncovering the truth.—
Quinta Jurecic,
The Atlantic,
30 Jan. 2026
-
But monks there complained that the slain king was walking around at night, frightening them with strange sounds.—
Rivka Galchen,
New Yorker,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
There is a difference, lawmakers said, between keeping the Zoom call on a phone on a passenger seat versus directly watching the Zoom meeting in a way that is distracting.—
Christopher Keating,
Hartford Courant,
17 Mar. 2026
-
State officials argued that street art designs are distracting and can pose a safety risk.—
Susannah Bryan,
Sun Sentinel,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Ten points to Gryffindor for Bree shooting and subsequently scaring the bear away.—
Lincee Ray,
Entertainment Weekly,
13 Mar. 2026
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Effectively scaring a bear also reinforces the person as dominant in an encounter, so the bear learns to avoid people.—
Stephen Underwood,
Hartford Courant,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Lawmakers will debate bills related to loosening gun regulations at colleges in at least eight states this year, including Florida, Louisiana, New Hampshire, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming.—
Alexandra Koch,
FOXNews.com,
18 Mar. 2026
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Why insurance hasn't fixed the problem Insurance, the typical market mechanism for navigating risk, has proven largely ineffective for loosening traffic in the strait, some analysts said.—
Max Zahn,
ABC News,
17 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Undoing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/undoing. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
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