as in expanding
to arrange the parts of (something) over a wider area
after the protestors had unfurled their banner, it stretched from one side of the visitors' gallery to the other
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Recent Examples of unfurling
Amid an unfurling federal corruption probe into City Councilmember Farah Louis, the Daily News has learned that the Brooklyn rep has been embroiled in a messy internal council investigation.
—
Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2026
The florist-by-trade gestures behind her to hundreds of flowers contained in buckets — blue thistles, ivory anemones and calla lilies painted silver — all twisted and unfurling into the air.
—Maddie Connors, Los Angeles Times, 2 Mar. 2026
On May 20, 2025, Joslin and a group of activists climbed up one-third of El Capitan, a 3,000-foot granite monolith in Yosemite Park, unfurling a large Transgender flag and hanging it along the mountainside for approximately two hours.
—Noe Padilla, USA Today, 24 Feb. 2026
Poems about buds unfurling in the spring, poems about music, poems about all the work there is to be done.
—Literary Hub, 6 Feb. 2026
Tehran has responded by unfurling a four-story poster in the capital’s Enghelab – or Revolution – Square threatening the destruction of an American aircraft carrier.
—Joseph Ataman, CNN Money, 27 Jan. 2026
The 12-hour time difference didn’t stop him from diving headfirst into the moment, jumping on the bed, playfully unfurling the pieces and directing camera cuts.
—Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 21 Jan. 2026
Since then, changes have started unfurling at the entertainment and retail center.
—Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 19 Jan. 2026
Hardly out of her teens, Anna Christopherson is a Swedish immigrant, brought by her mother to Minnesota as a young child while her father, Chris (Brian d’Arcy James, unfurling in the role as if it were written for him), was constantly away at sea.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 14 Dec. 2025
Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2026
The florist-by-trade gestures behind her to hundreds of flowers contained in buckets — blue thistles, ivory anemones and calla lilies painted silver — all twisted and unfurling into the air.
—Maddie Connors, Los Angeles Times, 2 Mar. 2026
On May 20, 2025, Joslin and a group of activists climbed up one-third of El Capitan, a 3,000-foot granite monolith in Yosemite Park, unfurling a large Transgender flag and hanging it along the mountainside for approximately two hours.
—Noe Padilla, USA Today, 24 Feb. 2026
Poems about buds unfurling in the spring, poems about music, poems about all the work there is to be done.
—Literary Hub, 6 Feb. 2026
Tehran has responded by unfurling a four-story poster in the capital’s Enghelab – or Revolution – Square threatening the destruction of an American aircraft carrier.
—Joseph Ataman, CNN Money, 27 Jan. 2026
The 12-hour time difference didn’t stop him from diving headfirst into the moment, jumping on the bed, playfully unfurling the pieces and directing camera cuts.
—Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 21 Jan. 2026
Since then, changes have started unfurling at the entertainment and retail center.
—Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 19 Jan. 2026
Hardly out of her teens, Anna Christopherson is a Swedish immigrant, brought by her mother to Minnesota as a young child while her father, Chris (Brian d’Arcy James, unfurling in the role as if it were written for him), was constantly away at sea.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 14 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unfurling
Verb
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Major insulin makers Eli Lilly, Sanofi and Novo Nordisk also have moved to cut the cost of insulin, with different combinations of cutting list prices, capping out-of-pocket costs and expanding affordability.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
2 Apr. 2026
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The golden arches is expanding its McValue offerings with an under $3 menu and a $4 breakfast meal deal starting on April 21.—
Erin Clements,
PEOPLE,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The same applies to the brilliant turquoise of Turks and Caicos’s water, extending miles beyond its shoreline like an electrified aura.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
7 Apr. 2026
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Without extending the boundary, the same area that was under threat of annexation by Hialeah in 2023 remains at risk.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Moleskine and Issey Miyake’s collaboration brings the late designer’s love of pleats to the beloved writing staple, with the pages unfolding accordion-like between the familiar black cover of the brand’s standard notebooks.—
Nicole Hoey,
Robb Report,
31 Mar. 2026
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The sophomore honors student makes a […] Recent Gallup and Pew findings suggest that CCSU’s institutional reorientation is unfolding at a moment of eroding public trust in Big Tech.—
Dr. Timothy Scott,
Hartford Courant,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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His parents prospered, opening a fur shop called Paris-New York and moving to the tony Sixteenth Arrondissement.—
Lauren Collins,
New Yorker,
1 Apr. 2026
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The Harris Theater for Music and Dance has announced its 2026-27 season of dance, music and theater, its 20th anniversary season in Millennium Park, opening with a visit from the Trisha Brown Dance Company in September.—
Doug George,
Chicago Tribune,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unfurling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unfurling. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.
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