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Stephenlearner Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

Difference between untangle, disentangle, and unravel

Hi,

I got these phrases from a dictionary. Can you tell me the differences between the three words?

disentangle a complicated knot.

unravel the knitting.
unravel a tangled thread.
unravel a cardigan.

untangle knitting wool.
untangle electric flex.

Thanks very much.
  

Top answer

disentangle - to get something away from the thing that is twisted around it ("I disentangled the dog from the net") untangle - to separate things that are twisted around each other or something that is tangled around itself ("I untangled the two nets" / "I untangled the net, and then laid it flat") unravel - when you separate the threads/fibers of something - usually that are systematically put together that way ("I unraveled the net, and was left with a pile of threads") All three of these can also be used interchangeably to mean to simply mean to undo something that is knotted or interwoven

— Bw

  • disentangle - to get something away from the thing that is twisted around it ("I disentangled the dog from the net") untangle - to separate things that are twisted around each other or something that is tangled around itself ("I untangled the two nets" / "I untangled the net, and then laid it flat") unravel - when you separate the threads/fibers of something - usually that are systematically put together that way ("I unraveled the net, and was left with a pile of threads") All three of these can also be used interchangeably to mean to simply mean to undo something that is knotted or interwoven
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2 Answers
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disentangle - to get something away from the thing that is twisted around it ("I disentangled the dog from the net")

untangle - to separate things that are twisted around each other or something that is tangled around itself ("I untangled the two nets" / "I untangled the net, and then laid it flat")

unravel - when you separate the threads/fibers of something - usually that are sy
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