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Glite Dictionary
to unyoke

to unyoke

9.9
To take the wooden bar off an animal that pulls a plow or cart
  • verb
  • /ʌnˈjoʊk/
translation icon : desuncir
  • To prepare for the evening, they had to unyoke the mules from the cart before feeding them.

Examples

  • The farmer needed to unyoke the oxen from the plow so they could rest in the shade.

  • After a long day of work, the stablehand decided to unyoke the horses and let them roam free.

  • And then, of course, when some prima donna made a hit, The gallery boys in their enthusiasm, would unyoke the horses from her carriage, and pull it themselves from the theatre to her hotel.

    The Dead (1987)

Synonyms

to unhitch
vsto unyoke
4 5.7

To take off something that is attached to another thing, like a trailer or bicycle

removing animals' pulling gear rather than general detachment
to outspan
vsto unyoke
  • Archaic
9.9

To remove the harness or straps from working animals to let them rest

removes the same restraint without emphasizing rest

Antonyms

to yoke
6 7.0

To join two things so they work together

Surface Forms

unyoke infinitive
unyoked past
unyoked past participle
unyoking present participle
unyokes third person singular

Morphology

unyoke = yoke (transparent) = un + yoke

Formed by the productive negative prefix 'un-' applied to 'yoke', so the meaning is directly derivable: to remove a yoke.

Etymology

Unyoke breaks down into un- ('remove') and yoke ('a wooden frame that joins animals to a plow or cart'). So to unyoke is to take the yoke off animals and free them from work.