unlock

verb

1. 1

   To undo or open a lock or something locked by, for example, turning a key, or selecting a combination.

   I unlocked the door and walked in.

2. 2

   To obtain access to something; to meet the requirements of a security or protection system.

   I unlocked the dictionary article so I could edit it.

   This computer game is shareware, but you can pay for a code to unlock the full version.

   Plastics are energy-rich substances, which is why many of them burn so readily. Any organism that could unlock and use that energy would do well in the Anthropocene. Terrestrial bacteria and fungi which can manage this trick are already familiar to experts in the field.

   The combination of the new station and road improvements is expected to unlock up to 14,000 new homes, with the council saying no more than 2,500 homes can be built at Beaulieu and north east Chelmsford without the station.

3. 3

   To configure (a mobile phone) so that it is not bound to any particular carrier.

4. 4

   To disclose or reveal previously unknown knowledge or potential.

   The discovery of a clue unlocked the mystery.

   Twitter has extraordinary potential. I will unlock it.

5. 5

   To be or become unfastened or unrestrained.

   He had come straight up without mishap or swerving off his course, and his shut teeth unlocked.

6. 6

   figurativeTo make available.

   He also warned of the supply chain issues, stating: "Don't pretend you're going to unlock half a dozen [electrification] schemes simultaneously because you'll probably flood the supply chain, we don't have the capacity."

7. 7

   To undermine something that has control over a situation; to find a way to counter or oppose.

   Saka's cross unlocked a well-organised Ukraine defence for Kane to pounce and set England on their way before producing a superb piece of individual skill to effectively end the contest.

noun

1. 1

   The act of unlocking something.

   Unlike modern, automated prisons, each cell here was locked and unlocked manually with a large skeleton key. The first duty was to get a proper head count of each inmate, insuring each was alive. Once done, an unlock was conducted.

   The instructions between a lock and an unlock form a critical section.

2. 2

   An initially hidden feature that is made available to reward the player for some achievement.

   The other unlocks, like a grenade launcher or a sniper's steady ability, didn't fit into my playstyle.

Forms

plural

unlocks

past tense

unlocked

past participle

unlocked

present participle

unlocking

third person singular

unlocks