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Glite Dictionary
🕊️ To set free 🕊️ Setting free 📢 To make public 📢 A new product 💨 To let out 💨 Letting out 😌 Emotional outlet 📄 A legal document 🔘 A control device 🏢 Job ending 📝 To give up 🎶 Musical ending
to release

to release

∞ 1.8
To let someone or something go free from being held
  • verb
  • /rɪˈliːs/
: liberar
  • The police decided to release the suspects after gathering more evidence.
  • release prisoners
  • released from prison
  • detained and released

And once I was able to release them, Jay, they didn't come back.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • I release you.

    Erzulie (2022)

  • Release him!

    Four (2011)

  • You beat him, and I will release him to you.

    The Book of Clarence (2024)

  • All right, Jane, I will leave you, release you back into the wild.

  • The problem is, right after they released one hostage, they took another.

    Alene B. Duerk: The First Woman Admiral (2020)

  • Again, a number of public statements were released, appealing for peace and reconciliation.

    Academic text (2015)

  • The crew of the Seaman Guard Ohio was ultimately released after two months.

    Tiffany McKinley: Sailor (2014)

  • Ultimately, most youths detained in adult jail will be released within one year.

    Academic text (2013)

  • Release the hostages.

    Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

  • Sarah, her hands free, sits up and releases the Velcro straps on her feet.

    Fiction book (1991)

Synonyms

to let go
vsto release
∞ 1.4

To stop holding something or someone so they are free

is a common physical action rather than a wider legal or formal ending
to let out
vsto release
638 1.1

Allow someone or something to leave a place

is mainly about permitting exit from a place rather than ending confinement generally
to free
vsto release
544 1.0

To release someone or something that is held

is the basic verb meaning to end confinement or stop holding
to let go of
vsto release
391 1.9

To stop holding something so it is not in your hand

is the specific act of stopping physical grip rather than ending confinement or restrictions
to set free
vsto release
226 2.7

To let a person or animal go after keeping them in a place where they could not leave

is the main neutral term for ending confinement in any context
to unleash
vsto release
206 4.3

To suddenly let a strong feeling, power, or animal go free

stresses sudden, intense action rather than the general act of ending restraint
to liberate
vsto release
202 4.3

Set someone free from prison or unfair control

is a formal political act ending systemic domination rather than small restraints
to cut loose
vsto release
  • Informal
106 4.4

To have fun and act without control, or to remove someone from their job

can mean ending obligations, not only physical confinement or holding
to unlock
vsto release
99 1.3

Make a skill, chance, or secret become available

is the broader action of ending confinement in many ways, not only opening barriers
to loose
vsto release
70 3.0

To let something go free or make it less tight

is a broader term covering both making less tight and ending restraint
to disengage
vsto release
51 5.3

To stop being part of or connected to something

is about detachment from connections rather than ending all confinement
to let loose
vsto release
47 3.8

Set something free from being held or controlled

is similar but also covers ending physical or formal confinement generally
to extricate
vsto release
21 7.6

Free a person or thing from something that traps them

is used for rescue from complex problems rather than simple untying
to emancipate
vsto release
  • Formal
19 7.0

To set someone free from unfair control or rules so they have equal rights

is a legal or rights-focused action rather than a simple physical unbinding
to unchain
vsto release
7 4.1

Remove chains and other things that hold someone so they are free

is like that but applies to many types of confinement or restraint
to unbind
vsto release
4 6.4

To free something by untying ropes or cords

is a physical action of removing knots rather than a broad ending of restraint
to unshackle
vsto release
4 6.5

Free someone or something from limits and control

focuses on removing specific restraints rather than general ending of constraint
to unloose
vsto release
  • Archaic
1 7.0

To make something less tight or set something free

is a milder physical easing of constraint rather than full ending of captivity
to untether
vsto release
1 6.2

To free someone or something from limits so they can act more freely

is about cutting physical or figurative ties rather than ending all forms of control
to cast loose
vsto release
1 6.7

To free something by letting go of ties or limits

highlights unfastening to allow movement rather than ending control in all senses
to disenthrall
vsto release
  • Archaic
1 9.9

To free someone from control or false ideas

has a mental or ideological focus rather than simply ending physical restraint
to unloosen
vsto release
  • Archaic
1 7.2

To make something less tight or free it from something holding it

focuses on reducing tightness or strictness more than total separation

Antonyms

to detain
  • Formal
197 5.9

To keep someone with the police for questioning

to confine
111 4.2

Keep someone or something within limits, for example in a small space

Idioms

by press release
  • Literature
2 3.6

Through an official announcement a company sends to the news media

to release the kraken
  • Slang
1 9.9

To let loose something powerful and hard to control

Phrasal Verbs

to release the handbrake
  • UK
1 2.6

Allow a parked car to move by letting the handbrake go

Compounds

press release
  • Literature
125 2.5

An official message sent to the news media to give information

re-release
  • UK
7 3.6

A new version of a film or album that people put out before

time-release
  • Specialized
5 5.4

Releases medicine slowly into the body over several hours

policy by press release
  • Literature
7.5

Announcing official decisions to the public by press release before any internal discussion

How Free

to emancipate
  • Formal
19 7.0
to liberate
202 4.3
to release
∞ 1.8
to let go
∞ 1.4

Surface Forms

release infinitive
released past
released past participle
releasing present participle
releases third person singular

Morphology

release = lease (opaque) = re + lease

Although analyzable as 're-' + 'lease', the modern word 'lease' is commonly known as 'rent/let for payment', so learners cannot reliably derive 'set free' from the parts.

Etymology

Release comes from the parts re- 'back' and the French verb laisser 'to let'. So, to release someone is to 'let go' of them or send them back to freedom.