unfasten

English

Etymology

From un- +‎ fasten.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Verb

unfasten (third-person singular simple present unfastens, present participle unfastening, simple past and past participle unfastened)

1. (transitive) To detach from any connecting agency or link; to disconnect.
   • c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:

     He doth unfasten so and shake a friend.

2. (intransitive) To come unloosed or untied.

Synonyms

• undo

Antonyms

• do up
• button
• button up
• tie up
• zip
• zip up

Hyponyms

• unbutton
• untie
• unzip

Translations

to detach from any connecting agency or link — see also disconnect

• Bulgarian: откачам (bg) (otkačam), отвързвам (bg) (otvǎrzvam)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 解開／解开 (zh) (jiěkāi)

• Dutch: losmaken (nl)
• Finnish: irrottaa (fi)
• French: défaire (fr)
• German: abschnallen, lösen (de), losmachen (de)
• Greek: λύνω (el) (lýno), χαλαρώνω (el) (chalaróno), (unbutton) ξεκουμπώνω (el) (xekoumpóno), ξεδένω (el) (xedéno)

  Ancient: λύω (lúō)

• Irish: scaoil
• Japanese: はずす (ja) (hazusu), ほどく (ja) (hodoku), 解く (ja) (とく, toku)
• Russian: развя́зывать (ru) impf (razvjázyvatʹ), развяза́ть (ru) pf (razvjazátʹ), расстёгивать (ru) impf (rasstjógivatʹ), расстегну́ть (ru) pf (rasstegnútʹ)
• Spanish: desabrochar (es)

to come unloosed or untied

• Bulgarian: пткачам се (ptkačam se), развързвам се (razvǎrzvam se)
• Dutch: loskomen (nl)
• Finnish: irrota (fi)
• Italian: sciogliere (it), svergare
• Russian: развя́зываться (ru) impf (razvjázyvatʹsja), развяза́ться (ru) pf (razvjazátʹsja), расстёгиваться impf (rasstjógivatʹsja), расстегну́ться (ru) pf (rasstegnútʹsja)
• Welsh: dod yn rhydd

References

• “unfasten”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.