unyoke

[ uhn-yohk ]

verb (used with object)

, un·yoked, un·yok·ing.

1. to free from or as if from a yoke.
2. to part or disjoin, as by removing a yoke.

verb (used without object)

, Obsolete.

, un·yoked, un·yok·ing.

1. to remove a yoke.
2. to cease work.

unyoke

/ ʌnˈjəʊk /

verb

1. to release (an animal, etc) from a yoke
2. tr to set free; liberate
3. tr to disconnect or separate
4. archaic.
   intr to cease working

Word History and Origins

Origin of unyoke¹

before 1000; Middle English unyoken, Old English ungeocian. See un- ², yoke ¹

Example Sentences

In the chaotic tangle of dust, horseflesh and steel, finding an unexpected advantage was not difficult for those unyoked from scruple.

From Salon

More specifically, a female third party, unyoked from ego.

From Los Angeles Times

We are to eat here, he says, and he unyokes the bullocks to water them.

From Literature

And though one misses in McKenzie’s choir-boy countenance some of the irascible self-possession of Groff’s performance, the show’s depiction of teenagers with a need to unyoke themselves from adult control remains vibrantly intact.

From Washington Post

As part of Citizens’ unyoking from RBS and its continuing transformation, the lender has been building out its capital- and global-markets offerings.

From Wall Street Journal