Unlay

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To separate the strands of a twisted rope back into their individual fibers ; to loosen and open up something that has been wound or twisted together
2. Taking apart the twisted strands of a cord so they come loose from one another ; undoing a coiled or spiraled arrangement until it straightens out
3. Untwisting a length of rope or yarn into its component fibers ; unwinding something that was tightly coiled so that it comes apart

Etymology: Unlay is a straightforward formation: the prefix "un-" attached to "lay," meaning to undo the lay, or twisted strands, of a rope or cable. The verb is used for taking a rope apart so that its strands can be separated and reused, or to untwist a length of rope. The "lay" in question is not the same word as the verb meaning to put something down. It comes from Old English "leċġan," a causative verb meaning to make something lie or put something in place, which descends through Middle English "leyen" to modern "lay." In the nautical and cordage sense, "lay" refers to the direction and tightness of the spiral in which a rope's strands are twisted together, so to unlay is to reverse that twisting.

Synonyms: untwist, unwind

Antonyms: twist