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Glite Dictionary
❄️ To thaw 💰 To release funds
to unfreeze

to unfreeze

2 4.3
Allow use of money or assets that were blocked
  • verb
  • /ʌnˈfriːz/
  • Specialized
translation icon : liberar
  • It's sitting unused at central banks around the world to eventually be unfrozen at some point.
  • unfreeze assets
  • unfreeze credit
  • unfreeze the money

It's sitting unused at central banks around the world to eventually be unfrozen at some point.

Examples

  • Lawyers for Oron have asked the court to unfreeze the company's assets so it can take the case to appeal, but Liberty Media has objected, noting that the cyberlocker still hasn't given a full accounting for its worldwide assets.

    Blog text (17)

  • Last week, Oron asked the court to unfreeze its assets over and above the $550K judgment plus $200K in attorney's fees and costs.

    Blog text (17)

  • I can unfreeze this for you, but we gotta spread this shit out.

    Queenpins (2021)

  • It's gonna cost 40 bucks to unfreeze it.

    Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween (2018)

  • And to me, the concept that there is one culture and you want to change it by unfreezing it and freezing it back again as a model itself, I don't think works.

  • Fears of war may also reflect North Korean expectations about the possible U.S. reaction to recent decisions to unfreeze the Yongbyun nuclear facilities and to restart North Korea's nuclear weapons development program, as well as to lift the ballistic missile launch moratorium and accelerate its missile development program.

    Academic text (2003)

  • The government decided to unfreeze the funds so that the project could finally begin.

  • After months of negotiations, they were able to unfreeze the assets blocked by the sanctions.

  • To help the local economy, the organization plans to unfreeze the donations that have been on hold.

Synonyms

to release
vsto unfreeze
925 1.8

To make a product or information available to the public

means allowing previously restricted items to be used rather than public distribution
to free
vsto unfreeze
74 2.8

To make information or documents available after being kept back

refers specifically to permitting use of restricted things with focus on funds
to unblock
vsto unfreeze
3 3.5

Allow someone to use money or assets again after they were frozen

is about allowing previously restricted items to be used especially funds

Antonyms

to freeze
  • Formal
154 5.3

Officially stop an activity, for example the use of money or assets

How Available

to restore
219 3.5
to release
  • Formal
69 2.6
to unfreeze
  • Specialized
2 4.3
to unlock
212 1.0
to unblock
3 3.1

Surface Forms

unfreeze infinitive
unfreezing present participle
unfreezes third person singular
unfroze past
unfrozen past participle

Morphology

unfreeze = freeze (transparent) = un + freeze

This sense is the reversal of the figurative use 'freeze' (to restrict access), formed by the productive prefix 'un-' producing 'allow use' or 'make available'.

Etymology

Unfreeze is also used for money and funds: freeze here means to 'stop movement', and to unfreeze is to let the money move or be used again. That's why to unfreeze funds means to allow their use after they were blocked.