unlock
verb [T] /ʌnˈlɒk/
/-ˈlɑːk/ Definition
B2 to open something, especially a door that is locked (= fastened with a lock) using a key or an electronic device: I keep worrying that I've left the garage door unlocked.Unfastening and opening unlock the mystery/secret of sth › to discover important new facts about something: A chemical has been discovered that may be the key to unlocking the mysteries of Parkinson's disease.Finding and discovering unlock the imagination › to make the imagination more active, producing interesting ideas and images: One of poetry's functions is to somehow unlock the imagination.Affecting and influencing
(Definition of unlock verb from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus
© Cambridge University Press)
Browse the Thesaurus
SMART Thesaurus
Synonyms and related words:
- a fishing expedition idiom
- ascertain verb
- break fresh/new ground idiom
- breakthrough noun
- catch sb red-handed idiom
- find (sth) out phrasal verb
- finder noun
- finders keepers (losers weepers) idiom
- finding noun (DISCOVERY)
- flush sb out phrasal verb
- on the scent idiom
- orientate verb (FIND POSITION)
- pin sth down phrasal verb
- put sb onto sth phrasal verb
- put your finger on sth idiom
- run sb/sth down phrasal verb (FIND)
- smell sth/sb out phrasal verb
- suss verb
- unearth verb
- winkle sth/sb out phrasal verb
Topic:
Finding and discovering
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Word of the Day
Blog
Read our blog about how the English language behaves.
New Words
Find words and meanings that have just started to be used in English, and let us know what you think of them.
