unzip

verb un·zip \ ˌən-ˈzip \

Definition of unzip

transitive verb

:to zip open

intransitive verb

:to open by or as if by means of a zipper

See unzip defined for English-language learners

See unzip defined for kids

Examples of unzip in a Sentence

She unzipped the tent flap.

Recent Examples of unzip from the Web

Aäe kept an intense training regimen, skiing steep couloirs in the North Cascades at five months with her pants unzipped, running a 30-mile week leading up tothe birth, and going into labor at the climbing gym.

— caitlin moran, The Seattle Times, "Elite female athletes balance climbing huge mountains, raising tiny humans," 16 Aug. 2017
The company posted a cheeky photo on its Instagram of the jeans unzipped to expose the model’s bum.

— lisa gutierrez, kansascity, "Good news: You don’t have to pay $2,000 anymore for ‘bare butt’ full-zipper jeans," 10 Aug. 2017
The Targa had a foldable top from the roll-bar forward and a soft canvas cover with a flexible plastic window that could be unzipped from the car and removed.

— hannah elliott, Bloomberg.com, "Mighty, Cute: The Colorful History of the Best-Selling Porsche 911," 8 Aug. 2017
Downloadable apps are often zipped to speed up their transfer time, but they must be unzipped in order to run them.

— don edrington computer tutor, sandiegouniontribune.com, "How are PDF, ZIP and RTF files used?," 30 June 2017
The switch kicks in to stop the spiral from unzipping too far and lets the polymerase catch up.

— NBC News, "First-of-Its-Kind DNA Video Raises Big Question About Molecule of Heredity," 20 June 2017
But kneeling, Manning unzipped the main compartment, revealing her laptop.

— matthew shaer, New York Times, "The Long, Lonely Road of Chelsea Manning," 12 June 2017
The battery pack (4 AA batteries not included) is safely secured in a slim, screw-closure plastic case accessed by unzipping the water-resistant nylon liner that permanently encloses the 23.5-by-12-.75-inch polyurethane foam mat.

— Philly.com, "This compact mat will help soothe babies," 4 June 2017
The report said the boys' mother observed no shaving tools but did see one of her son's pants unzipped.

— ken daley, NOLA.com, "New Orleans 'Paw Paw' indicted on two counts of child rape," 12 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'unzip.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of unzip

1939

UNZIP Defined for English Language Learners

unzip

verb

Definition of unzip for English Language Learners

: to open (something) by using a zipper
computers : to cause (a file that has been reduced in size) to return to its original size by using special software