Library / English Dictionary

UNDO

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: undid    , undone   

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Remove the outer cover or wrapping of

Example:

undo the parcel

Synonyms:

undo; unwrap

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "undo" is one way to...):

expose; uncover (remove all or part of one's clothes to show one's body)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

undoer (a person who unfastens or unwraps or opens)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Cause to become loose

Example:

loosen the necktie

Synonyms:

loosen; undo; untie

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "undo" is one way to...):

alter; change; modify (cause to change; make different; cause a transformation)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

undoer (a person who unfastens or unwraps or opens)

undoing (loosening the ties that fasten something)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Cancel, annul, or reverse an action or its effect

Example:

I wish I could undo my actions

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "undo" is one way to...):

change by reversal; reverse; turn (change to the contrary)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "undo"):

unwire (undo the wiring of)

open; spread; spread out; unfold (spread out or open from a closed or folded state)

unbuckle (undo the buckle of)

disentangle; unwind (separate the tangles of)

unknot; unpick; unravel; unscramble; untangle (become or cause to become undone by separating the fibers or threads of)

unbraid (undo the braids of)

disconnect; unplug (pull the plug of (electrical appliances) and render inoperable)

unpin (remove the pins from; unfasten the pins of)

unbutton (undo the buttons of)

unclip (remove the clip from)

unstaple (take the staples off)

unbelt (undo the belt of)

unfasten (cause to become undone)

unpick (undo (the stitches) of (a piece of sewing))

unhitch (unfasten or release from or as if from a hitch)

unstrap (remove the strap or straps from)

unbrace; unlace; untie (undo the ties of)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

undoing (an act that makes a previous act of no effect (as if not done))

Sense 4

Meaning:

Deprive of certain characteristics

Synonyms:

undo; unmake

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "undo"):

destroy; destruct (do away with, cause the destruction or undoing of)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 5

Meaning:

Cause the ruin or downfall of

Example:

A single mistake undid the President and he had to resign

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "undo" is one way to...):

ruin (destroy or cause to fail)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody

Derivation:

undoer (a person who destroys or ruins or lays waste to)

undoer (a seducer who ruins a woman)

Credits

 Context examples: 

I can do that conscientiously, said Carter, who had now undone the bandages; only I wish I could have got here sooner: he would not have bled so much—but how is this?

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

"Oh, my tongue, my abominable tongue! Why can't I learn to keep it quiet?" groaned Jo, remembering words which had been her undoing.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

And as she spoke she was undoing a small parcel, which Fanny had observed in her hand when they met.

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

Certainly a grey mist swirled before my eyes, and when it cleared I found my collar-ends undone and the tingling after-taste of brandy upon my lips.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

I undid his collar, poured the cold water over his face, and raised and sank his arms until he drew a long, natural breath.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Your portion is unhappily so small that it will in all likelihood undo the effects of your loveliness and amiable qualifications.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

Leave undone or leave out; get rid of.

(Drop, NCI Thesaurus)

The kidnapper undid the bloody wrappings and looked at his lacerated hand.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

Here was something undone.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

It is goal that can’t be undone, nor would you want to do so—it will be a goal worth working toward, for it will form one of the major pillars of your life.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)