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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Protests in Israel also resumed after a two-week pause during the Israel-Iran war, with demonstrators demanding a deal that would free the hostages still in Gaza.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
30 June 2025
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But the pending Senate bill keeps the door wide open, effectively freeing very wealthy business owners from any cap on their SALT deductions.—
Howard Gleckman,
Forbes.com,
30 June 2025
Verb
-
Their freedom came more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln liberated slaves in the Confederacy by signing the Emancipation Proclamation during the Civil War.—
Ani Freedman,
Fortune,
20 June 2025
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Despite the temperamental British weather (gray skies and gooseflesh are a seasonal hazard) most of the 40 or 50 bodies at this summer celebration are duly liberated.—
Maureen O'Hare,
CNN Money,
19 June 2025
Verb
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For every container of fireworks arriving at a U.S. port, importers must pay the tariff upfront, before customs even thinks about releasing the goods.—
Richard Howells,
Forbes.com,
27 June 2025
-
Lyons was released from Tottenham’s youth system at age 16 and fell into depression before dying by suicide 10 years later.—
Colin Millar,
New York Times,
27 June 2025
Verb
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Another group, Project Dynamo, which had rescued Americans evacuating Afghanistan in 2021, used its connections to fly a group of touring veterans from Israel to Miami.—
David Lyons,
Sun Sentinel,
30 June 2025
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In return, prosecutors alleged, Madigan used his influence over the General Assembly to help ComEd score a series of huge legislative victories that not only rescued the company from financial instability but led to record-breaking, billion-dollar profits.—
Jason Meisner,
Chicago Tribune,
30 June 2025
Verb
-
Artificial implants naturally wear out or loosen with time and activity.—
Colleen Doherty,
Verywell Health,
27 June 2025
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The challenges were steep enough that Georgia has decided to loosen its work verification protocols from monthly to once a year.—
ProPublica,
ProPublica,
26 June 2025
Verb
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The South American liberation leader Simón Bolívar emancipated the slave laborers who worked on his family’s estate—unlike George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.—
Carolina A. Miranda,
The Atlantic,
30 June 2025
-
Kate Hudson considered being emancipated from her parents, Goldie Hawn and Bill Hudson, to better her Hollywood career.—
Janelle Ash,
FOXNews.com,
28 June 2025
Verb
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According to The Vail Daily, volunteer rescuers across Colorado responded to at least four missions during June to save dogs.—
Owen Clarke,
Outside Online,
1 July 2025
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In the year 2025, when an ex-Packers great in Aaron Rodgers is trying to save Pittsburgh, this kind of a blockbuster swap would only be fitting.—
Evan Massey,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unchain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unchain. Accessed 8 Jul. 2025.
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