UNRAVELED Synonyms: 66 Similar and Opposite Words

unraveled

verb

past tense of unravel

as in frayed

to separate the various strands of it took us forever to unravel the jumbled mass of Christmas tree lights

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in solved

to find an answer for through reasoning unraveled the mystery

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of unraveled But something has clearly unraveled in recent days. — Nic Robertson, CNN Money, 19 June 2026 Schlittler did allow some traffic before things unraveled in the fifth, permitting a walk and a single to start the inning. — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 26 June 2026 By dissolving the barrier between art and life and emphasizing the role of the viewer, Duchamp unraveled art’s claim to special status. — Sebastian Smee, The Atlantic, 29 June 2026 Things quickly unraveled for the freshman, who threw 65 pitches Sunday over five innings to earn his 12th win in 12 decisions this year. — Mitch Sherman, New York Times, 23 June 2026 Heard and Depp married in February 2015, but their relationship quickly unraveled. — Charlie Carballo, USA Today, 30 June 2026 Driven by a global political shift right post-2024 elections, regulations were unraveled, and businesses abandoned sustainability teams and reports. — Jon McGowan, Forbes.com, 19 June 2026 Sequence unraveled, and with it the onward rush, progression, the sense of one event coming after another; my understanding of cause and effect, of the chronological chopping-up of time both personal and historical—before and after, premodern and modern—all blurred, folded, unraveled out of reach. — Literary Hub, 16 June 2026 The alleged plot to attack Sunday night's UFC event at the White House may have been unraveled by a worried mother who noticed her son's growing obsession with guns, tactical gear and secretive online communications. — Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 17 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for unraveled

Verb

Trump’s posturing underscored how his alliance with Meloni — long seen as one of his closest friends in Europe — has frayed over his war in Iran, his tariffs against Europe and his complaints when anyone disagrees with him.

— Nicole Winfield, Fortune, 20 June 2026
Meloni is astonished and defiant Trump’s posturing underscored how his alliance with Meloni — who has long been seen as one of his closest friends in Europe — has frayed over his war in Iran, his tariffs against Europe and his complaints when anyone disagrees with him.

— Nicole Winfield, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2026

Definition of frayed

Verb

Tatis led off and knocked Boyd's fifth pitch over the left-field bleachers onto Waveland Avenue, before Chicago answered in the bottom of the inning when Seiya Suzuki scored on Carson Kelly's RBI single.

— CBS News, CBS News, 1 July 2026
Koorimannil and his best friend had answered an ad online for jobs encouraging tourism to Thailand.

— ABC News, ABC News, 30 June 2026

Definition of answered

Verb

On Sunday, June 14, the Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) disentangled a relatively small humpback whale after recreational boaters spotted the animal anchored in fishing gear in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary late that morning, CCS said in a press release.

— Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 16 June 2026
Veterinarians then assessed whether Meatloaf could be safely disentangled in the water or needed to be brought in for further care, Jaros said.

— Cierra Morgan, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026

Definition of disentangled

Verb

The bottom line Whether creditors can charge interest after someone dies depends largely on the original loan agreement and applicable state law, but in many cases, interest continues accruing until the debt is resolved.

— Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 1 July 2026
Questions around governance, accountability, service guarantees and long-term operational coordination have not been fully resolved.

— Daniel Keller, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026

Definition of resolved

Verb

The hair at the crown is smoothed back but not slick—in fact, there’s a decent amount of volume up top—with virtually no visible part.

— Marci Robin, Allure, 2 July 2026
The standout attachment for me is the large round barrel brush, which smoothed my hair with ease and didn’t tug or snag it along the way.

— Conçetta Ciarlo, Vogue, 1 July 2026

Definition of smoothed

Browse Nearby Words

unravel

unraveled

unraveling

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Unraveled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unraveled. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of unraveled

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on unraveled

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

perfunctory

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Popular in Wordplay

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes