unbindv.
/(ˌ)ʌnˈbʌɪnd/, U.S. /ˌənˈbaɪnd/ 1. figurative.c1000 Ælfric Homilies I. 352 Þæs fæder tungan his nama unband.c1400 Rom. Rose 2226 To vilayne speche in no degre Late never thi lippe vnbounden be.1859 Ld. Tennyson Guinevere in Idylls of King 233 O maiden,..Sing, and unbind my heart that I may weep.
a. transitive. To free from a band, bond, or tie; to make loose or free by undoing a band, etc. Also absol.
ΚΠ
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. xxi. 2 Ge infindes asal gebunden & fola mið hia, unbindas & to-lædas me.
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke xiii. 15 An eghuelc iuer on symbel-doeg ne unbindeð vel woxo his vel assald of bósih.
c1175 Lamb. Hom. 5 Ure drihten sende his .ii. apostles..þet heo unbunden þat assa.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 2223 Quan men ðo seckes ðor un-bond And in ðe coren ðo agtes fond.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Luke xix. 30 Vnbynde ȝe him [sc. the ass], and brynge ȝe to me. And if ony man schal axe, whi ȝe vnbynden, thus ȝe schulen seye to him.
1426 J. Lydgate tr. G. de Guileville Pilgrimage Life Man 3038 Pereyl off deth..ys a cause evydent That thow mayst wel..The swerd ydrawe,..And the keyes vnbynde also.
a1450 (c1410) H. Lovelich Hist. Holy Grail xlix. l. 213 Thanne let this Sarrazin Iosephe vnbynde his hondis that bownden weren behinde.
1484 W. Caxton tr. Subtyl Historyes & Fables Esope ix Whanne the nyght was come, the labourer vnbonde his oxen.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) ii. i. 4 For these other goods, Vnbinde my hands, Ile pull them off my selfe. View more context for this quotation
1669 S. Sturmy Mariners Mag. i. ii. 17 Get the Sail into the Ship, and unbind all things clear of it.
1683 J. Reid Scots Gard'ner ii. i. 61 Set the Graff on the West-side... Unbind, when you find their bands harme them.
1707 J. Mortimer Whole Art Husbandry (1721) II. 262 When you unbind them you may discern which are good and have taken, and which not.
1791 A. Radcliffe Romance of Forest II. ix. 52 The ruffians unbound me from my horse.
1821 W. Scott Kenilworth III. xiv. 289 He unbound his horse from the tree.
b. transferred. To loosen, open up or out, set free, detach, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > open [verb (transitive)] > unfasten and open
undoc1000
unbind1577
society > authority > lack of subjection > freedom or liberty > liberation > set free [verb (transitive)] > free from restraint
ungyve1531
unlock1531
unbuckle1548
unpen1561
unmanacle1582
unmuzzlec1585
unseal1589
dischain1603
unshackle1611
to let out1613
uncage1620
unfreeze1637
loosen1645
unconfine1651
unsequester1664
unbay1687
uncurb1729
unbind1735
unleash1822
disenchain1853
1577 J. Grange Garden in Golden Aphroditis sig. Sjv So doth the morne (me thinkes) vnclose and eke vnbinde, Each thing whiche in the night, are closed in their kynde.
1633 P. Fletcher Purple Island i. xxxvi. 10 Vain men, too fondly wise, who plough the seas,..The earths vast limits dayly more unbinde!
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics i, in tr. Virgil Wks. 51 While Earth unbinds Her frozen Bosom to the Western Winds. View more context for this quotation
1735 A. Hill Zara v. 60 His absence shall unbind his sister's tongue.
1743 P. Francis & W. Dunkin tr. Horace Odes (new ed.) I. i. xxii. 18 Place me where never Summer Breeze Unbinds the Glebe, or warms the Trees.
1785 W. Cowper Tirocinium in Task 439 The most disint'rested and virtuous minds, In early years connected, time unbinds . View more context for this quotation
1817 P. B. Shelley Laon & Cythna vii. xl.176 Like wind Which..can wake the still cloud, and unbind The strength of tempest.
c. To take the bandage off (a limb or wound).
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > treatment by topical applications > treat by topical applications [verb (transitive)] > bandage > remove bandage
unbind1639
unbandage1840
1639 T. de Gray Compl. Horseman ii. xviii. 301 Binde upon it a linnen cloth.., then..unbinde the foot.
1699 W. Dampier Voy. & Descr. ii. iii. 91 The next Morning the Cloath being rubb'd off, I unbound it, and found the Worm broken off, and the Hole quite healed up.
1821 Ld. Byron Sardanapalus iii. i. 102 I will unbind your wound and tend it.
2. figurative.absolute.1820 W. Wordsworth Processions 67 That licentious craving in the mind To act the God among external things, To bind, on apt suggestion, or unbind.1822 W. Wordsworth Eccl. Sonn. i. xxxix Through earth and heaven to bind and to unbind!† b. To free from sin or its consequences; to absolve. Obsolete.absolute.a1300 Cursor Mundi 28742 Sin crist is buxum to vnbind, Qui sal man preist ouer hard find.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 172 He ssel zeche zuych ane confessour, þet conne bynde and onbynde.1396–7 in Eng. Hist. Rev. (1907) XXII. 301 Þei seyn þat..þei mown cursyn and blissin, byndin and unbyndin at here owne wil.c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 63 Here it semyth þat acursyng byndyth, & absolucyoun vnbyndyth.† c. To set free, deliver, cure (from sickness or trouble). Obsolete.† d. To make free, to release, from some legal restraint or obligation. Also absol. Obsolete.† e. absol. To give up an enterprise. Obsolete. rare.
a. In renderings of Matthew xvi. 19, etc. Cf. loose v. 1c.
ΚΠ
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. xvi. 19 Suæ huæt ðu unbindes ofer eorðu bið unbunden in heofnum.
c1000 Ælfric Homilies I. 542 Swa hwæt swa hi unbindað ofer eorðan, þæt bið unbunden on heofonum.
c1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 65 Al þat prest bindeð soðliche buð ibunden & al þat he unbindeð beð unbunden.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. xviii. 18 What euere thingis ȝee shulen vnbynde vpon erthe, tho shulen be vnbounden and in heuenes.
c1400 N. Love tr. Bonaventura Mirror Life Christ (1908) 123 What that ȝe vnbynde in erthe schal be vnbounden in heuene.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > worship > sacrament > confession > make confession [verb (transitive)] > hear confession, shrive
shrivea776
unbindc950
assoil1297
soila1300
confess1377
releasec1405
absoil1440
absolve1528
shrift1611
society > faith > worship > sacrament > confession > absolution > give absolution [verb (transitive)]
shrivea776
unbindc950
assoil1297
soila1300
reconcilea1387
releasec1405
absoil1440
absolve1496
absolve1525
shrift1611
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke, Contents lxxvi Ðone aldormono unband [L. absoluit] seðe cuom hal gedoe þætte losade.
c1000 Ælfric Homilies I. 234 Forði sceolon ða lareowas ða unbindan fram heora synnum þa ðe Crist geliffæst þurh onbryrdnysse.
a1200 Vices & Virtues 53 Hwa se..is mid heued-senne ibunden, þe naure ne mai ben unbunden bute ðurh priestes muðe oðer ðurh biscopes.
c1275 Passion Our Lord 630 in Old Eng. Misc. 55 Þeo þat ye aleseþ here of heore sunnes bende, Hi schulle beon vnbunden euer buten ende.
1303 R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne 1014 Certys we ouȝt þan with ful mynde To preye god vs of synne vnbynde.
c1400 Rom. Rose 6416 I am unbounde;..For he that myght hath in his honde, Of alle my synnes me unbonde.
a1450 Knt. de la Tour (1906) 53 The deuell holdithe hem bounde in his seruice till thei be vnbounde by confession.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > pleasure > state of being consoled or relieved > be relieved of [verb (transitive)] > console or relieve > relieve of suffering
lighteOE
unbindc950
alightOE
slakea1300
deliverc1325
covera1375
lissec1374
relievea1382
allegea1425
refreshc1430
alighten1530
untaste1609
mitigate1644
disaffright1676
soothe1746
shrive1899
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke xiii. 16 Ðios..dohter abrahames..ne were..reht to unbindanne vel to undoanne of bend ðissum dæge symbles?
c1000 Saxon Leechd. I. 98 Gyf hwa on þære untrumnysse sy þæt he sy cis, þonne meaht ðu hine unbindan.
c1385 G. Chaucer Legend Good Women Dido. 1339 O cloth, whil Jubiter hyt leste, Take now my soule, vnbynd me of thys vnreste.
c1430 Hymns Virgin (1867) 97 How myȝt god me of care vnbinde Siþen god loueþ trouþe so verrili?
c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 63 Ȝysterday, whan þe absolucyoun was red ouyr my graue, I was vnboundyn of my peyne.
ΘΚΠ
society > morality > duty or obligation > moral or legal constraint > immunity or exemption from liability > be exempt from (a liability or obligation) [verb (transitive)] > free from obligation
freeeOE
unbind1297
quitclaima1325
acquit1340
excuse1340
loose1340
releasec1350
assoil1366
soilc1384
dischargea1387
quita1387
relieve1416
absoil1440
deliver1440
acquittance1448
quiet1450
acquiet1453
absolve?a1475
defease1475
skill1481
relax1511
redeema1513
exoner1533
exonerate1548
solvec1550
distask1592
disgage1594
upsolve1601
disoblige1603
disengage1611
to get off1623
exclude1632
supersedea1644
to let off1814
to let out1869
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 3370 In oþer halue he founde Ioye in is herte, uor þe contasse of spoushod was vnbunde.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 649 Þo was he al clene louerd, to binde & unbinde.
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 97 Laȝe is yzed þeruore þet hy hare-zelue ne byn ake þe oþre byndeþ and þis onbynt.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Rom. vii. 6 Now forsothe we ben vnbounden fro the lawe of deeth.
c1386 G. Chaucer Merchant's Prol. 14 Were I vnbounden al so moot I thee I wolde neuere eft comen in the snare [of marriage].
a1470 Dives & Pauper (1496) iv. vi. 166/2 By his relygyon he is unbounden from this commaundement.
a1492 W. Caxton tr. Vitas Patrum (1495) v. xiv. f. cccxliiii/2 I praye the that it please the to doo to me that grace..to vnbynde me of the sentence of excomynycacyon in whiche I am bounden.
1581 J. Marbeck Bk. Notes & Common Places 978 New things, that is, the sweete tidings of ye Gospell to vnbinde us.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > completing > non-completion > abandon an attempt or enterprise [verb (intransitive)]
unbenda1400
unbinda1400
to leave (a person) the field?c1450
to give upa1616
to call (it) quits1851
to pull the pin1860
to hang up one's fiddle1889
to pack in1906
to pack up1925
to cop out1942
to give it away1949
a1400–50 Alexander (Ashm.) 1744 Forthi is bettir vnbynd & of þe brathe leue.
a1400–50 Alexander (Ashm.) 1974 For-þi ware bettir vnbynde or þou bale suffire.
3. figurative.1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis III. 369 Sche which mai the hertes bynde In loves cause and ek unbinde.1400–10 T. Clanvowe Cuckoo & Nightingale ii The god of love..can binden and unbinden eke What he wol have bounden or unbounde.† b. To deliver (a woman). Obsolete. rare.† c. To clear of phlegm. Obsolete. rare.Apparently only attested in dictionaries or glossaries.
a. To set (a person) free from bonds; to restore to personal liberty in this way. Also in figurative context.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > lack of subjection > freedom or liberty > liberation > set free [verb (transitive)] > from confinement
unbindc950
to let freec1000
aletOE
to let out1154
loosea1225
slakec1374
loosen1382
to let goc1384
releasec1384
unloosec1400
unlockc1410
dissolvec1420
relievec1450
unloosen?a1475
to set at liberty1509
enlargea1513
to let at large1525
to let loose1530
to turn loose?1566
enfranchise1569
to turn up1573
enfranch1581
unkennel1589
unwind1596
to cast loosec1600
disimmure1611
disimprison1611
unhamper1620
to let abroad1633
unfold1633
disencloister1652
disencage1654
discagea1657
disincarcerate1665
eliminate1745
unspherea1806
unmew1818
unbottle1821
uncage1837
unbag1854
bust1921
society > faith > worship > sacrament > confession > absolution > give absolution [verb (intransitive)]
unbindc1300
c950 in J. Stevenson Rituale Ecclesiæ Dunelmensis (1840) 7 From synna bendum unbundeno..vsig..gihald.
c1000 Ælfric Homilies I. 466 Æfter his behate ic ðe unbinde, þæt þu fare to westene.
a1023 Wulfstan Homilies 83 Æfter þusend gearum bið Satanas unbunden.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 3682 Forr þatt he wollde unnbindenn uss. Off helle piness bandess.
c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) 601 [They] Vnkeueleden him, and swiþe unbounden.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 1227 Þan þei him vnbond bliue & brouȝt him his stede.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Deeds xxii. 30 Forsoth in the day suynge he..vnbound him.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 14912 Þat wiþ þe fend dwellynge ware He wolde hem vnbynde in dede.
1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende 180/1 Thenne came an aungel that unbonde them.
c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) xlviii. 168 I requyre the vnbynd me & brynge me out of this dolouros payne.
1594 W. Shakespeare Titus Andronicus iii. i. 24 Vnbinde my sonnes, reuerse the doome of death. View more context for this quotation
1635 Life Long Meg of Westm. (1871) 27 Help to unbind me, for I am undone, and almost killed.
1799 Hull Advertiser 3 Aug. 4/1 A..girl..tied up by both arms to a tree... I implored that she might be immediately unbound.
1817 P. B. Shelley Laon & Cythna iii. xiii. 63 They bore me to a cavern in the hill Beneath that column, and unbound me there.
1839 J. G. Whittier World's Convention 228 Methinks I see my country rise:..Her captives from their chains unbound.
1851 J. G. Whittier Pris. of Naples 13 Whom man hath bound let Thy right hand unbind.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > source or principle of life > birth > confinement > confine or deliver [verb (transitive)] > give birth > aid in childbirth
unbindc1325
midwife1638
obstetricate1662
deliver1676
accouche1858
granny1880
born1888
c1325 Lai le Freine 85 Sone therafter bifel a cas, That hirself with child was. When God wild sche was unbounde, And deliuerd.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > discharge or flux > discharge [verb (transitive)] > clear chest
unbind1552
1552 R. Huloet Abcedarium Anglico Latinum Vnbynde the breaste, expectoro.
4.
a. To unfasten, untie, undo (a bond, cord, etc.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or detachment > loosening or unfastening > loosen, unfasten, or untie [verb (transitive)]
unbindc950
undoc950
unleeseOE
breaka1225
unfest?c1225
leesea1325
loosena1382
unloosea1382
loose1388
resolvea1398
unlace?c1400
unfastenc1440
unloosen?a1475
to let slip1526
unbrace?1526
diffibulatea1538
unframe1567
unclit1587
undight1590
unclip1598
unclenchc1600
unreeve1600
unlock1609
ungrapple1611
unquilt1611
abstringe1623
renode1623
unspan1648
unfast1684
disengage1780
undub1807
unclap1846
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or detachment > loosening or unfastening > loosen, unfasten, or untie [verb (transitive)] > free from a band, bond, etc.
undoc930
unbindc950
untrussc1400
untiec1450
ungird1485
ungirth1580
unchain1582
unbrace1593
ungirt1598
unpinion1660
unlash1699
release1779
disengirdle1871
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke iii. 16 Ðæs ne am ic wyrðe to unbindanne ðuongas sceoea his.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 10412 Þa shollde an oþerr cumenn forþ..& shollde unnbindenn þin sho þwang.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2956 Heo unbunde [c1300 Otho to-borste] þa locun drowen ut þa baiȝes.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Deeds xvi. 26 And anoon alle the doris ben openyd, and the bondis of alle ben vnbounden.
1426 J. Lydgate tr. G. de Guileville Pilgrimage Life Man 22028 For the osyers nygh echon Were broke ffyrste.., Wherffore the hoopys were vnbounde.
1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene vi. xi. sig. Hh8v But she resolu'd no remedy to fynde,..Till Fortune would her captiue bonds vnbynde . View more context for this quotation
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis vii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 417 Unbind your Fillets, loose your flowing Hair.
1757 W. Wilkie Epigoniad vi. 170 They..the helmet loos'd, the buckled mail unbound.
1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Odyssey in Iliad & Odyssey II. v. 419 Unbind the zone, Which thou shalt cast far distant from the shore Into the deep.
1816 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Canto III civ. 57 'Twas the ground Where early Love his Psyche's zone unbound.
1820 P. B. Shelley Vision of Sea in Prometheus Unbound 176 The sharks and the dog-fish their grave-clothes un-bound.
b. In figurative context.
ΚΠ
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Mark vii. 35 Sona untyndo woeron earo his & un-bunden wæs gebend tungæs his.
a1200 Moral Ode 188 in Old Eng. Hom. I. 171 Vre bendes he vnbond & bohte us mid his blode.
a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) Isa. lviii. 6 Vnbynde thou the byndingis togidere of vnpitee.
a1500 Ratis Raving i. 1067 Gyf thai twa frendis can nocht find That scho may syk a band [sc. as that of marriage] wnbynd, I pray thee, reul the as thai red.
1559 W. Baldwin et al. Myrroure for Magistrates Clarence xi Loves strongest bandes vnkindnes doth vnbinde.
1729 A. Pope Dunciad (new ed.) i. 22 Whether thou..magnify Mankind, Or thy griev'd Country's copper chains unbind.
1744 G. Berkeley Siris (ESTC T72826) §302 Theology and philosophy gently unbind the ligaments that chain the soul down to the earth.
1810 W. Scott Lady of Lake v. 233 Those cords of love I should unbind, Which knit my country and my kind.
1843 J. G. Whittier Knight of St. John 70 Then let the Paynim work his will, And death unbind my chain.
c. figurative. To dissolve, undo, destroy.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (transitive)] > bring to ruin or put an end to > binding relationships, vows, etc.
unbindc1175
unsteekc1250
loose1340
dissolvec1380
unknita1382
sundera1400
untwinec1400
unsolder1538
unlace1577
untwind1600
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 15590 Ure laferrd..seȝȝde. Vnnbindeþþ all þiss temmple. & icc. Itt i þre daȝhess reȝȝse.
c1374 G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde iv. 675 Al þe world ne koude here loue vnbynde, Ne Troylus out of here herte caste.
c1386 G. Chaucer Parson's Tale ⁋511 Thanne cometh discord that vnbyndeth alle manere of freendshipe.
c1430 Pilgr. Lyf Manhode (1869) iv. l. 200 Þis byndinge, quod she, is cleped silence; Benedicite, þis is þilke þat oonliche vnbynt it.
1490 Arte & Crafte to knowe well to Dye (Caxton) 19 Thou vnbondest the synne of all the worlde.
1529 T. More Supplyc. Soulys ii. f. xxviiiv By thys place ye se.., that cryste at hys resurreccyon dyd lose and vnbynd paynys in hell.
1643 R. Baker Chron. Kings of Eng. iii. 19 Both Kings had given authority..to the Cardinall to affirme and confirme, to bind or unbind, whatsoever should be in difference betweene them.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis iv, in tr. Virgil Wks. 317 Her Charms unbind The Chains of Love; or fix them on the Mind.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis xii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 587 No force, no Fortune, shall my Vows unbind, Or shake the steadfast Tenour of my Mind.
a. absol. To aid the natural flux of the bowels. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > treatments removing or dispersing matter > remove or disperse [verb (intransitive)] > loosen bowels
unbind1398
loose1528
1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomew de Glanville De Proprietatibus Rerum vii. lxix. (Bodl.) f. 73 b/2 With laxatyue medicens we laxeþ & vnbindeþ as with scamony.
b. transitive. To detach, clear away. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > treatment of specific diseases or conditions > treat specific diseases or conditions [verb (transitive)] > clear worms from stomach
unbind1541
1541 Bk. Propertyes Herbes (new ed.) sig. E ij Thys herbe..wyll vnbinde wormes in a mannes stomake.
6. intransitive.† a. To dissolve. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > condition of matter > bad condition of matter > deteriorate in condition [verb (intransitive)] > decompose, crumble, or melt away
melteOE
fleetc1384
dissolvec1420
unbindc1450
loosec1480
moulder1531
mirtlec1540
mould1542
moulter1568
mutter1609
mosker1612
disband1633
dust1636
dissipatea1676
deliquesce1792
decompose1793
disintegrate1817
c1450 Middle Eng. Med. Bk. (Heinrich) 220 Tak gomme of chyrytrees, or of plumtrees,..& put hyt in old wyn forto onbynde.
b. To become loosened.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or detachment > loosening or unfastening > be loosened, unfastened, or undone [verb (intransitive)]
unfastenc1315
unknitc1330
unloose1580
untie1590
loose1770
unbind1827
1827 J. Keble Christian Year II. lxxxvii. 143 Touch'd he upstarts—his chains unbind.
Derivatives
unˈbinder n. one who unbinds.
ΚΠ
1837 E. Bulwer-Lytton Athens II. 17 Bacchus,..the God of the Vineyard and the ‘Unbinder of galling cares’.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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v.c950