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
At this moment, on this Saturday morning, crew members representing nearly every team focused their attention on one specific team unloading one specific car.
—
Jordan Bianchi, New York Times, 23 May 2026
Perry dropped Diaz with a knee in the closing seconds, unloading uppercuts, elbows and hooks as Diaz tried to bounce away from the fence.
—Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 16 May 2026
Dahlia, a disillusioned police aide, breaks into the mansion of the corrupt police chief Bernal and steals the money from his safe, unloading the funds to slum dwellers whose settlement Bernal razed down.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 15 May 2026
Although Drake’s clear goal with this triple drop is unloading the clip, there’s a semblance to the sprawl.
—Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 15 May 2026
Dahlia, a disillusioned police aide, breaks into the mansion of the corrupt police chief Bernal and steals the money from his safe, unloading the funds to slum dwellers whose settlement Bernal razed down.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 14 May 2026
Workers were apparently unloading sulfuric acid from a railcar at the site using compressed air, which firefighters described as a standard procedure.
—Cecilio Padilla, CBS News, 13 May 2026
Nicole TungIndonesian fishermen unloading various species including sharks and wedgefish, which are one of the most threatened species, in Tegal, Indonesia, last June.
—Jay Ganglani, NBC news, 3 May 2026
While unloading his veterans at the trade deadline in February, Karnišovas dealt Dosunmu to Minnesota along with Julian Phillips for Rob Dillingham, Leonard Miller and four second-round draft picks.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2026
Jordan Bianchi, New York Times, 23 May 2026
Perry dropped Diaz with a knee in the closing seconds, unloading uppercuts, elbows and hooks as Diaz tried to bounce away from the fence.
—Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 16 May 2026
Dahlia, a disillusioned police aide, breaks into the mansion of the corrupt police chief Bernal and steals the money from his safe, unloading the funds to slum dwellers whose settlement Bernal razed down.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 15 May 2026
Although Drake’s clear goal with this triple drop is unloading the clip, there’s a semblance to the sprawl.
—Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 15 May 2026
Dahlia, a disillusioned police aide, breaks into the mansion of the corrupt police chief Bernal and steals the money from his safe, unloading the funds to slum dwellers whose settlement Bernal razed down.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 14 May 2026
Workers were apparently unloading sulfuric acid from a railcar at the site using compressed air, which firefighters described as a standard procedure.
—Cecilio Padilla, CBS News, 13 May 2026
Nicole TungIndonesian fishermen unloading various species including sharks and wedgefish, which are one of the most threatened species, in Tegal, Indonesia, last June.
—Jay Ganglani, NBC news, 3 May 2026
While unloading his veterans at the trade deadline in February, Karnišovas dealt Dosunmu to Minnesota along with Julian Phillips for Rob Dillingham, Leonard Miller and four second-round draft picks.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unloading
Verb
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Federal prosecutors later charged Russell with depriving Bils of his rights under color of law and discharging a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 May 2026
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Allen was also charged with discharging a firearm during a violent crime and transportation of a firearm and ammunition in interstate commerce.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
23 May 2026
Verb
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As Rosneqvist celebrated by sipping milk, then dumping it over his head, Malukas was consoled by his father in pit lane.—
Michael Marot,
Los Angeles Times,
24 May 2026
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Families living in a toxic-waste polluted area around Naples were preparing to meet Pope Leo XIV during his pastoral visit on Saturday, carrying with them years of grief, anger and hopes for justice after losing children to cancer linked to a multi-billion mafia racket of dumping toxic waste.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
23 May 2026
Verb
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This last element is worth unpacking a bit.—
Ian Mackenzie,
Literary Hub,
27 May 2026
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Good Communication Exceptional CEOs are fantastic at unpacking complex strategies and turning them into digestible ideas and actionable steps.—
Nancy Padberg,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2026
Verb
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At another plant in Singapore, Polen says, BD had been discarding about 200 needles each shift, for 50 years, because they’d get clogged in the sandblasting process used to remove metal burrs.—
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson,
semafor.com,
22 May 2026
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Voibe keeps everything local, processing audio directly on the Mac and discarding it immediately after transcription, and a lifetime subscription is only $40 right now (reg.—
StackCommerce Team,
PC Magazine,
21 May 2026
Verb
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First responders quickly went to work evacuating residents and knocking down the flames.—
Elijah Westbrook,
CBS News,
1 June 2026
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In March, Warren led the Massachusetts delegation in a letter to the State Department criticizing the administration’s lack of preparation in terms of evacuating Americans and pressing for answers on its response.—
Justin Papp,
CNBC,
28 May 2026
Verb
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The team will take on Gucci's color scheme — red, green, black and gold — while ditching the Alpine brand's blue and BWT's pink.—
Matt Reigle OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
27 May 2026
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In one instance, Guo flew across the country to help keep one of Baseten’s customers from ditching them for a rival.—
Rashi Shrivastava,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2026
Verb
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Meanwhile, the public has become critical of the war as gas prices continue to soar and Republicans face losing control of the House in the upcoming November Congressional elections.—
Peter Lucas,
Boston Herald,
30 May 2026
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But losing on penalties will still make this moment one of the worst in their career.—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
Verb
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Anthropic has raised concerns over students off-loading cognitive work to AI systems, and OpenAI has acknowledged that dependence on AI tools more generally is a problem.—
Lila Shroff,
The Atlantic,
1 Dec. 2025
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The canister was still wedged in my crotch, off-loading its contents like a homemade Roman candle.—
Charlie Sheen,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Sep. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Unloading.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unloading. Accessed 2 Jun. 2026.
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