| 释义 |
▪ I. undo, v.|ʌnˈduː|
[OE. an-, on-, undón (see un-2 3 and do v.), = OFris. un(d)dua (WFris. ont-, ûntdwaen), MDu. and Du. ontdoen, OS. an(t)dôn, -duan (MLG. entdôn), OHG. anttoan, in(t)duon, etc. (MHG. entuon).
The absence or scarcity of material illustrating senses 1 and 3 in the 17th and 18th centuries is remarkable; the evidence suggests that, in these senses, the word was revived or reintroduced into literary use by Scott.]
I.
1. trans. To unfasten and open: a. A door, gate, or window.
c893K. ælfred Oros. vi. i. 254 Þa wearð eft Ianes duru andon,..þeh þær nan ᵹefeoht þurhtoᵹen ne wurde. c1000Ags. Psalter (Thorpe) xxiii. 7 Undoð nu eowre ᵹeatu,..and onhlidað þa ecan ᵹeata. 11..Grave 20 in Anglia V. 290 Nefst ðu nenne freond..Ðæt æfre wndon ðe wule ða dure. c1175Lamb. Hom. 5 Þet faire ȝet me hat hit, &..nefre ouer xii monþe nis hit undon bute to dei. c1250Gen. & Ex. 603 Arches windoȝe undon it is, ðe Rauen ut-fleȝ. c1325Lai le Freine 183 The porter of the abbay aros,..The chirche dore he vndede. c1386Chaucer Miller's T. 541 The wyndow she vndoth, and that in haste. 1412–20Lydg. Chron. Troy iv. 4691 We for fer dar nat issen oute, Nor be so bolde to vndone a gate. 1520in Collect. (O.H.S.) I. 100 Vndo your dore. 1581A. Hall Iliad vi. 114 The dores of gold she doth vndoe, vnfolded, rich and large. 1801Scott Eve St. John xvii, The door she'll undo, to her knight so true. 1821― Kenilw. xxxii, The Earl undid the lattice, and stepped out. 1841Dickens Barn. Rudge ix, Undo the shop window, that I may get in that way. 1880Mrs. Parr Adam & Eve II. 63 She undid the gate, and held it half open.
absol.a1300K. Horn 1069 (Camb. MS.), He com to þe gateward... Horn bad undo softe. 1390Gower Conf. I. 243 This Geta cam thanne ate laste Unto the dore and seide, ‘Undo’. c1425Seven Sages 1410 (P.), At hys dore he wolde inne,..He schof ther-onne and bade undo.
b. A box, sack, bale, etc.
c1000ælfric Gen. xlii. 27 Þa undyde hira an his sacc. a1300Cursor M. 5004 Þai..did þair fardels be vndon. c1315Shoreham i. 2148 He seȝ a bok was fast ischet;..Ne myȝte hy no man ondo. c1350Will. Palerne 4846 Þe clerk þanne deliuerli vndede þo letteres. c1412Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 1112 Vn-to his cofre he dressith hym in hye;..He it vndoth, and opneth. c1450Mirk's Festial 85 Then made he men to vndo þe tombe. 1466Paston Lett. II. 293, I sende yow..iij. tracle pottes of Geane;..they weer never ondoo syns that they come from Geane. 1535Act 27 Hen. VIII, c. 14 §4 Which packes..be not vndone nor opened at their arriual within the portes. 1573Baret Alv. O 144 To vndooe, or open a letter sealed. 1853M. Arnold Scholar Gipsy xxv, [The] Tyrian trader..on the beach undid his corded bales.
fig.c1300Sarmun xxxvi. in E.E.P. (1862) 5 Vn-do þin hert þat is iloke wiþ couetise. a1310in Wright Lyric P. xviii. 58 Swete Jhesu,..Undo myn herte ant liht ther-yn. 1596Drayton Legends iii. 106 What is that Man, by whom thou art controll'd, Or hath the Key of Reason to vndoe thee?
†c. To open by unlocking or uncovering. Obs.
a1122O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 656, Ᵹif hwa hit hælt, S. Petre mid heofne keie undo him heofenrice. a1300Cursor M. 6611 Þaa holes, quen þai þam vndid, Þai fand bot wormes creuland emid. Ibid. 6725 If animan vndus a pitt, And siþen wil it noght ditt.
†2. To open (the mouth or eyes). Obs.
a1000Kentish Gloss. in Wr-Wülcker 62 Aperientur [labia mea], siont ondone. c1000ælfric Hom. I. 548 He undyde his muð, and hi lærde. c1055Byrhtferth's Handboc in Anglia VIII. 317 Þæt he undo his eaᵹan. c1175Lamb. Hom. 121 Imong alle þere pine..ne undude he nefre ene his muð. c1250Gen. & Ex. 3971 Balaam it spureð and smit ðor-on; And god vndede ðis asses muð. 1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 7185 He gan as he awoke of slepe is eyen þo vndo. c1420Lay Folks Mass Bk. 82 Lorde un-do my lyppis. c1430Syr Gener. (Roxb.) 684 Yit a litle his eyen he vndede.
3. To unfasten by untying or by releasing from a fixed position; to unfix. Also in fig. context.
c950Lindisf. Gosp. John i. 27 Ðæs ic ne am wyrðe þætte ic undoe [Rushw. ondoe] his ðuong scoes. c1000ælfric Hom. I. 572 On ðære ylcan nihte Godes engel undyde þa locu ðæs cwearternes. c1250Gen. & Ex. 2114 Ne was non so wis man in al his lond, ðe kude vn-don ðis dremes bond. 13..Cursor M. 17357 (Gött.), [Þai] vndid þair lock all wid þe kay. 1382Wyclif Mark i. 7 Of whom I..am not worthi for to vndo, or vnbynde, the thwong of his schoon. c1440Promp. Parv. 365/1 Ondoon, or ondo lokys or speryngys, aperio. c1450Mirk's Festial 248 Oure lady aperet..yn þe prison, and vndyd his bondes. 1542Udall Erasm. Apoph. 230 b, Writhen..with so diffuse a knotte, that no man could vndooe it. c1586C'tess Pembroke Ps. (1823) lxviii. ii, The prisoners chaines are by his hands undone. 1605Shakes. Lear v. iii. 309 Pray you vndo this Button. 1683Moxon Mech. Exerc., Printing iv. 44 The Cheeks may..receive the Head..without un-doing the Cap and Winter. 1805Scott Last Minstr. v. xxii, Some friendly hand Undo the visor's barred band! 1818Byron Juan i. cxxxvii, Do pray undo the bolt a little faster. 1868Morris Earthly Par. (1870) I. i. 431 She..turned the box round,..undid The clasp, and fearfully raised up the lid.
b. To unfasten the clothing of (a person).
1633Rowley Match at Midn. iv, Wid[ow]. Alas! you will undo me. Alex. No, no, I will undo myself, look ye. 1841Dickens Barn. Rudge ix, Having undone her mistress, as she phrased it (which means, assisted to undress her). 1899T. M. Ellis 3 Cat's-Eye Rings 90 ‘Now undo me. I shall get into bed.’ ‘Yes, my lady.’
†4. To unbind; to release or free from a bond, bandage, covering, etc. Obs.
c930Laws Athelstan i. 23 Beon þreo niht, ær mon þa hond undo. c950Durham Rit. 42 From allvm vsiᵹ..synnvm..vndo. c1250Gen. & Ex. 581 Ilc wateres springe here strengðe undede. c1290S. Eng. Leg. I. 34/30 Nov, he seide, we schullen iseo..Ȝweþer he þe mai a-ȝein me vndo. a1300Cursor M. 14970 A moder ass yee sal þar find, And yee hir sal vn-do Vte of hir band. c1380Sir Ferumb. 1310 Oundo þis prysouns on & on;..þey schulleþ out of þis sory won. c1400Melayne 785 The kynge vndid his hede alle bare. 1513Douglas æneid vi. vi. 45 Sche,..with that word, the branch schew and vndid, That preualie ondir hir clok wes hid.
†5.
a. To remove, take away; to detach, cut off.
c1275Lay. 19205 Merlyn hadde al his craft ondo of þan kinge. 1340Ayenb. 106 Þe yefþe of wysdom, þet uestneþ..þe herte in god,..þet hi ne may by ondo ne to-deld. 1513Douglas æneid iv. xii. 117, I man Vndo this hair, to Pluto consecrait.
†b. To cut up (an animal). Obs.
13..Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1327 Quykly of þe quelled dere a querre þay maked,..& didden hem derely vndo. c1400Master of Game (MS. Digby 182) xxxiii, Þenne he shulde charge whome hym lyste to vndo þe deere. 1486Bk. St. Albans, Hunting e iii, When ye haue slayn the boore.., Ye shall vndo hym vnflayne when he shall be dight.
†c. To cut open; to open with a knife. Obs.
c1440Anc. Cookery in Househ. Ord. (1790) 451 Take pykes, and undo hom on the bale. c1440Pallad. on Husb. i. 601 Al esely me may vndo the skyn With prickyng of a nelde or of a pyn. a1450Myrc Par. Pr. 99 Teche the mydwyf that scho hye For to vndo hyre wyth a knyf, And for to saue the chyldes lyf. 1672Walker Paræm. 34 Undone, as ye would undoe an Oyster. 1688J. Grubb in Roxb. Ball. (1888) VI. 726 George undid the Dragon just as you'd undo an oyster.
†6. intr. To go apart; to open; to become unfastened, come undone. Obs.
1122O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.), Se wolcne undide on fower healfe and faht þær to ᵹeanes. c1300Harrow. Hell 138 (Harl. MS.), Helle gates y come nou to, ant y wole þat heo vndo. c1500in Hazlitt E.P.P. III. 109 At the dore I will assaie, If it will undoe. 1548in S. Haynes St. Papers Cecil (1740) 99 The Lady Elizabeth heryng the Pryvie-Lock undo,..ran out of hir Bed.
II.
7. trans. To annul, cancel, rescind (something done, effected, or decided on); to reduce to the condition of not having been done, effected, decided, etc.
c970in Birch Cartul. (1887) III. 417 Þet hyra nan næ undo þe ic to ðam haliᵹum mynstrum binnan þære byrig ᵹedon hæbbe. a1122O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 656, Leidon þa Godes curs..[on him] þe ani þing undyde þæt þær wæs ᵹedon. 1123Ibid. an. 1123, He sæde þone cyng þæt hit wæs to ᵹeanes riht,..ac se cyng hit nolde undon. c1250Gen. & Ex. 3014 Pharaon wroð herte on hard, And vndede hem ðat forward. 1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 5692 He vndude alle þe luþer lawes þat me huld biuore, & gode lawes broȝte vorþ. c1315Shoreham i. 1669 For þet compleþ þet spoushod..Þat hyt ne may be ondon. c1400Beryn 3355 For I have made a bargeyn, þat may nat be vndo. 1495Act 11 Hen. VII, c. 56 §2 Provided alweys that this present acte extend not..to undo eny your lettres patentes. a1533Ld. Berners Gold Bk. M. Aurel. (1546) B viij, Julius Cesar..adnulled and vndyd all that Sylla hadde made. 1605Shakes. Macb. v. i. 75 What's done, cannot be vndone. 1651Hobbes Leviath. ii. xix. 96 The diligent appearance of a few of the contrary opinion undoes to day, all that was concluded yesterday. 1680Baxter Answ. Stillingfl. I. 72 And what Princes do, they have power to undo. 1709Addison Tatler No. 108 ⁋5 To disappoint and undo what the most refined Spirits have been labouring to advance. 1768Tucker Lt. Nat. II. i. xiv. 196 Annihilating time and space, undoing past events or producing contrary ones. 1820Shelley Œd. Tyr. i. 384 With a little common sense,..Only undoing all that has been done. 1873Dixon Two Queens xxii. viii, No one could recall a case in which the peers had undone the finding of a grand jury.
absol.1440Bone Flor. 1511 He seyde, Thou haste wychyd me,..Undo or thou schalt abye. 1577–82Breton Floorish upon Fancie Wks. (Grosart) I. 6/1 To doo, and vndoo too, so that they may obtaine Their mistresse looue. 1593Shakes. 3 Hen. VI, ii. vi. 105 Warwicke as our Selfe, Shall do, and vndo as him pleaseth best. 1697Vanbrugh Prov. Wife i. i, Methinks, they do and undo, and make but bad work on't. 1803Wordsw. Sonn. Liberty xxii. 3 One man..Raised up to sway the world, to do, undo.
b. To reverse the doing or making of (some material thing or effect) so as to restore the original form or condition.
1426Lydg. De Guil. Pilgr. 11328 Tel me..Why makestow, & vndost ageyn Thy werk [sc. mats] so offte sythe a day? 1606Shakes. Ant. & Cl. ii. ii. 210 Whose winde did seeme To gloue the delicate cheekes which they did coole, And what they vndid did. 1632Sanderson Serm. I. 309 He never knoweth the end of his work: what he doth now, anon he must undo. 1679Moxon Mech. Exerc. vii. 125 It is sometimes used when Carpenters have committed error in their work, and must undo what they did, to mend it. 1797Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XVI. 484/1 It will not stop till it has turned as often as the end m has been twisted, and now all the twist will be undone. 1853Arab. Nts. (Rtldg.) 572 He went up..to the workmen, and..made them..undo all they had yet finished. 1866Geo. Eliot F. Holt i, She liked to insist that work done without her orders should be undone from beginning to end.
8. To destroy; to bring to naught; to do away with; to take away, remove. Now rare.
c950Lindisf. Gosp. Mark xiv. 58 Ic undoe vel ic toslito [L. dissolvam] tempel. c1175Lamb. Hom. 7 Ne swincke þu nefre swa muchel, a hit bið undon. c1250Gen. & Ex. 3902 Quat stungen man so saȝ ðor-on, ðat werk him sone al was vn-don. a1275in O.E. Misc. 101 Hwenne deþ heom lat to þe murehþe þat neuer ne byþ undon. 13..E.E. Allit. P. B. 562 Hym rwed þat he hem vp-rerde.., & efte þat he hem vndyd, hard hit hym þoȝt. 1382Wyclif Matt. v. 17, I came not to vndo the lawe, but to fulfille. c1425Eng. Conq. Ireland 94 Thay comen ayeyn hym..for to mak hym turne ayeyne; other, to vndo hym ryght yn the watyr. c1440Pallad. on Husb. i. 284 Vnhusbondynge vndoth fertilite. c1482J. Kay in Gibbon Crusades, etc. (1870) 135 To undoo and subuerte the holy cytee of Rome. 1573Tusser Husb. (1878) 73 Look daily well to them, least dogs vndoo them. 1638Sir T. Herbert Trav. (ed. 2) 303 The Bannyan is..so innocent, as not to undoe the silliest vermin. 1669Pepys Diary 31 May, Having done now so long as to undo my eyes almost every time that I take a pen in my hand. 1703Rowe Fair Penit. i. i, Nor tell him that which will undo his Quiet. 1788Trifler No. 14. 186 This hypothesis however is undone by the manifest design and order displayed through the whole creation. 1871Jowett Plato I. 499 The love of Aristogeiton and the constancy of Harmodius had a strength which undid their power.
b. To destroy in respect of means or position; to ruin. † Also (refl.) with (out) of.
1390Gower Conf. I. 193 Thurgh the conseil of you tuo I stonde in point to ben undo. 1477Paston Lett. III. 199, I beseche yow that I maye have an assyngnement of suche dettes..; ffor..I sholde ellys wylfully ondoo myselffe. 1483Caxton G. de la Tour C v b, For a lytel thynge ye haue vndo yow. 1531Star Chamb. Cases (Selden) II. 187 Extending vtterly to defame, inpouerisshe and vndoo your seid oratours. 1573Tusser Husb. (1878) 24 The rich it compelleth to paie for his pride; the poore it vndooeth on euerie side. 1612Two Noble K. iii. vi. 137 Our Folly has undon us. 1687A. Lovell tr. Thevenot's Trav. i. 32 It is never heard in Turkie, that a man hath undone himself by House-keeping. 1712Arbuthnot John Bull ii. iii, A foolish and negligent husband, who..was undone by his wife's elopement from him. 1798S. & Ht. Lee Canterb. T. II. 15 A single error undid him. 1852C. M. Yonge Cameos I. i. 5 England had been well-nigh undone by them, when the spirit of her greatest king awoke. 1867Morris Jason ii. 81 For surely mayst thou lean upon me, when..a king with wrong Would fain undo thee.
(b)1621J. Taylor (Water P.) Unnat. Father Wks. (1630) 136/2 He was enticed to vndoe himselfe out of all his earthly possessions. 1628Gaule Pract. The. 4 He hath quite vndone himselfe of Money, Wit [etc.].
c. To injure (a person) seriously. rare.
1530Palsgr. 767/2, I undo one by any..hurt done to his person by reason of any stroke. 17..Christmas Ba'ing xxi. in Skinner's Misc. Poet. (1809) 130 An't had na been for Davy Mair, The rascals had ondune him.
d. To ruin by seducing. Also absol. Now rare.
1612Shelton Quix. i. iii. 16 Doing many wrongs, solliciting many widdowes, vndoing certaine maidens. a1695Prior ‘Whither would my passion run’ i, Losing Her I am undone, Yet would not gain Her to undo Her. 1792Wolcot (P. Pindar) More Money ii. ix, As Darkness oft turns Pimp to undo a belle. 1809Malkin Gil Blas ii. vii. ⁋14 In my eyes he was created to undo.
9. To explain, interpret, expound. Now rare.
Sometimes with suggestion of sense 3.
a1300Cursor M. 4474 Said ioseph,..I sal vn-do þe wel þi sueuen. Ibid. 12206 Vndos me first quat es alpha. a1366Chaucer Rom. Rose 9 Macrobes, That..vndothe vs the auysioun That whilom mette kyng Cipioun. 1393Langl. P. Pl. C. iii. 40 Dauid vn-doþ hit hym-self, as þe doumbe sheweþ. c1450St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 680 Ga in my blissing þi mayster to, He sall þis dreeme þe vndo. 1581G. Pettie Guazzo's Civ. Conv. ii. (1586) 82, I praie you..vndo me the knot of this Gentrie, which I see to be verie intricate. 1618Fletcher Women Pleas'd iv. i, Here may be so much wit (though much I fear it) To undo this knotty question. 1654Whitlock Zootomia 252 Commend them to such as can undo a Text (as they tearm it) with as much ease as a bow-knot. 1833Tennyson Two Voices 232 In seeking to undo One riddle, and to find the true.
▪ II. undo
obs. variant of undone ppl. a. |