un·tan·gle

(ŭn-tăng′gəl)

tr.v. un·tan·gled, un·tan·gling, un·tan·gles

1. To free from a tangle; disentangle. See Synonyms at extricate.

2. To straighten out (something puzzling or complicated); clarify or resolve: The accountant was unable to untangle the company's finances.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Adj.

untangled - not tangled

tangled - in a confused mass; "pushed back her tangled hair"; "the tangled ropes"

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

This must not be, if the clue that leads through the windings of the story is to remain from end to end untangled in my hands.

View in context

Squirrels sleeping at the vets after being untangled

Four baby squirrels tied together by their tails rescued by RSPCA; RSPCA inspector said she was "sceptical" as to how anyone could have done this to the baby creatures

-- Six young squirrels whose tails were stuck together by tree sap are recovering after a Nebraska wildlife expert untangled them.

Six squirrels saved from ordeal of tangled tails

The Untangled Truth About Loving Your Natural Hair and Beauty

Just in Time for October's National Book Month: NBC Taps "Hairlooms" for Fall Readers Guide with Toni Morrison and Others

After about 15 minutes of doing something I would never (never!) describe as relaxing, I had the two strings untangled. But the knot was gone that I put in specifically to tell me which string was working.

Lighting the way this season

Linear polymers are simply long polymer chains with little or no branching, and are more easily untangled when a strain is applied.

What about melt strength?

"She's trying to get untangled so I untangled it all and her top was sagging down."

Urban shock at stringing his fan along; MUSIC

Zentangle Untangled: Inspiration and Prompts for Meditative Drawing offers a fun introduction to the meditative 'doodling' process that is Zentangle, an art form that uses repetitive patterns to create works of art.

Zentangle Untangled

But it survived after he untangled it and warmed it up.

HAWK, LINE & SINKER; Angler rescues osprey caught in fishing gear