1
as in discharging
to empty or rid of cargo
the dockworkers unloaded the ship
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dumping
to get rid of as useless or unwanted
I can't seem to unload this old car—even the charities won't take it!
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unloading
The Twins were holding a historic fire sale, unloading 11 players on or just before deadline day.
—
Jon Vankin, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Aug. 2025
Hikers ascend the Vestdalur trail past rusting WWII relics and wild blueberries—while ferries from Europe dock with a hiss—unloading travelers into a town where the fjord glows silver.
—Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 24 Aug. 2025
According to California Vehicle Code 22454, drivers must stop when a school bus is loading or unloading passengers with its red lights flashing and stop sign extended — but the rules can change depending on the road type.
—Sacbee.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Jon Vankin, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Aug. 2025
Hikers ascend the Vestdalur trail past rusting WWII relics and wild blueberries—while ferries from Europe dock with a hiss—unloading travelers into a town where the fjord glows silver.
—Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 24 Aug. 2025
According to California Vehicle Code 22454, drivers must stop when a school bus is loading or unloading passengers with its red lights flashing and stop sign extended — but the rules can change depending on the road type.
—Sacbee.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unloading
Verb
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Arrington has been charged federally with one count of carjacking and one count of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.—
Michael Dorgan,
FOXNews.com,
6 Sep. 2025
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The federal government reported 135,000 job openings, an uptick of 18,000 from June to July, after laying off or discharging 5,000 workers.—
Ty Roush,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Their deleterious impact creates conditions that favor further wildfires by dumping greenhouse gases (GHG) into the atmosphere which contributes to more warming.—
Suwanna Gauntlett Upjohn,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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But that list is not expected to grow this year, with the Heat already under the luxury tax threshold after dumping Haywood Highsmith’s salary in a trade with the Brooklyn Nets earlier this month.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Featuring the good, the bad and the ugly, ‘Look of the Week’ is a regular series dedicated to unpacking the most talked about outfit of the last seven days.—
Leah Dolan,
CNN Money,
1 Sep. 2025
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Certified facilitators exist for each personality assessment, and can be helpful in deeply unpacking the results of the team.—
Rebecca Fraser-Thill,
Forbes.com,
30 Aug. 2025
Verb
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These layers are then reorganized into tensor networks, which retain the most important patterns in the layer’s weights while discarding redundant information that isn’t contributing much to overall performance.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
3 Sep. 2025
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Rather than discarding efficiency altogether, Kelly and his team are working to redefine it.—
Maria Williams,
USA Today,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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After evacuating right before Katrina, Fussell and her family moved through Baton Rouge; New Iberia; Washington, DC; and Philadelphia before returning to New Orleans in December 2005.—
Dian Zhang,
USA Today,
29 Aug. 2025
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Speaking at a Senate hearing, Lazaro was asked whether the Philippines could seek Beijing's help in evacuating close to 200,000 Filipinos living in Taiwan if conflict breaks out.—
Karen Lema,
Reuters,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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But yesterday, Rihanna did a sartorial 180, ditching her tomboyish ’fit for a girly, baby pink look.—
Hannah Jackson,
Vogue,
5 Sep. 2025
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While some people may experience fleeting sugar and caffeine withdrawal symptoms, ditching soda from your diet can lead to a host of long-term health benefits.—
Sarah Garone,
Health,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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More than 1,200 privatized custodians were laid off by the district at the beginning of the month — and some spoke to the Tribune this week about losing their jobs.—
Claire Malon,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Aug. 2025
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Multiple factors helped create the hole, including money-losing athletics and an overly liberal spending policy that allowed department chairs to far exceed their budgets.—
Joanna Allhands,
AZCentral.com,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Start by emptying shelves, removing all items, one shelf at a time.—
Melissa Locker,
Southern Living,
2 Sep. 2025
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Express lines moved rapidly, emptying entirely within 10 minutes of gates opening and flowing smoothly for the rest of the evening.—
Noah White,
Miami Herald,
31 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unloading.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unloading. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
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