uncouple

verb

un·​cou·​ple ˌən-ˈkə-pəl 

uncoupled; uncoupling; uncouples

transitive verb

1

: to release (dogs) from a pair of joined collars

2

: detach, disconnect

uncouple railroad cars

uncoupler

ˌən-ˈkə-p(ə-)lər 

noun

Synonyms

• break up
• decouple
• disassociate
• disconnect
• disjoin
• disjoint
• dissever
• dissociate
• disunite
• divide
• divorce
• part
• ramify
• resolve
• separate
• sever
• split
• sunder
• unlink
• unyoke

Examples of uncouple in a Sentence

uncoupled the two railroad cars

Recent Examples on the Web

The deal would uncouple reliable growth assets, such as the Peacock streaming service and NBCU’s sports properties, from the eroding economics of cable. —Brian Steinberg, Variety, 19 Nov. 2024

The luxury house has experimented with different formats over the past few years, opting for the coed format in 2017 under former creative director Alessandro Michele and then reverting to separate showcases, uncoupling men’s and women’s collections, starting with the former in January 2023. —Luisa Zargani, WWD, 3 Sep. 2019

The crews were forced to uncouple their hoses, leave them lying on the forest floor, and beat a retreat. —Keith Matheny, USA TODAY, 20 July 2024

Spotify has since uncoupled somewhat from its biggest podcasters. —Ryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 10 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

uncouple

verb

un·​cou·​ple ˌən-ˈkəp-əl 

uncoupled; uncoupling

-ˈkəp-(ə-)liŋ

: disconnect

uncouple railroad cars