uncurl

American

[uhn-kurl] / ʌnˈkɜrl /

verb (used with or without object)

to straighten or become straightened out from a curl or curled position.

uncurl British

/ ʌnˈkɜːl /

verb

to move or cause to move out of a curled or rolled up position

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of uncurl

First recorded in 1580–90; un- ² + curl

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Dole eventually learned that he could grip a pen in his right fingers, a technique he used to mask the fact that he couldn’t uncurl them.

From Washington Post • Jun. 4, 2021

“It was amazing sitting on that bus and watching America uncurl before you.”

From The Guardian • Nov. 11, 2019

The one fry that didn’t quite uncurl and left the fryer in one giant potato-y, batter-y lump.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 12, 2019

Gradually - and very, very cautiously - one of those balls begins to uncurl, revealing two blackcurrant eyes, a long snout, an even longer tail and a soft pink belly.

From BBC • Feb. 4, 2015

When I picked him up, he made no attempt to uncurl, but remained in that state much like a catatonic stupor.

From "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023