unstopped

unstopped — verb

  • unstoppedpresent simple I / you / we / they
  • unstoppeds3rd person singular
  • unstoppeding-ing form
  • unstoppededpast simple

1. to make a blocked opening work again by clearing out what is stuck in it

1.verbtransitiveC2
Definition

to make a blocked opening work again by clearing out what is stuck in it

Example

Kwame used a wire hook to unstop the shower drain before school.

unstop + drain after a blockage

After dinner, Tanvi unstopped the kitchen sink so the water could run out.

Common collocations
  • unstop a drain
  • unstop a sink
  • unstop a pipe
  • unstop a toilet
  • unstop the tub
Synonyms
  • unclog

    the common modern choice for drains, sinks, and pipes

  • clear

    broader and more neutral; often used for removing what blocks a passage

  • open

    general result word; less specific than 'unstop' about the blockage

Antonyms
  • block

    make the opening unable to pass through

  • clog

    fill the passage so that water or air cannot move freely

Grammar Patterns

unstop + blocked opening

Usage Note

The object is usually a blocked passage such as a drain, sink, pipe, or toilet. In modern everyday English, people more often say unclog or clear.

Common Mistakes

Kwame unstopped the lamp before moving it.
Kwame unplugged the lamp before moving it.
Use 'unplug' for removing an electrical plug; 'unstop' is used for a blockage or a stopper.

2. to take the cork, plug, or other stopper out of a bottle, jar, or similar contai

2.verbtransitiveC2
Definition

to take the cork, plug, or other stopper out of a bottle, jar, or similar container

Example

Kenji carefully unstopped the medicine bottle and poured the syrup into a spoon.

unstop + bottle before pouring

At the picnic, Wren unstopped the glass flask for everyone to smell the tea.

Common collocations
  • unstop a bottle
  • unstop a flask
  • unstop a jar
  • unstop a vial
  • unstop the perfume bottle
Synonyms
  • uncork

    especially used when the stopper is a cork

  • open

    the everyday broad verb; it does not say what kind of closure was removed

  • unseal

    often used when a seal is broken rather than a stopper lifted out

Antonyms
  • stopper

    close the container by putting the stopper back in

  • seal

    close tightly so nothing gets in or out

Grammar Patterns

unstop + bottle or jar

Usage Note

The object is a bottle, jar, flask, or other container closed with a stopper. Distinguish from sense 1: here you remove the stopper itself, not a blockage inside a passage.

Common Mistakes

Tanvi unstopped the blocked drain by pulling the stopper.
Tanvi unclogged the blocked drain by clearing out the hair.
Use sense 2 for removing a stopper from a container; a blocked drain belongs to sense 1.

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

'Unstop' is an old-fashioned or literary verb that splits into two object patterns. With drains, sinks, pipes, and toilets, it means removing what blocks the passage; in present-day English, 'unclog' is usually the clearer choice. With bottles, jars, or flasks, it means taking out the stopper, where 'uncork' is more exact if the closure is a cork. 'Open' can replace either sense in a broad way, but it does not show whether you cleared a blockage or removed a stopper.

unstopuncloguncork ↗open ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • unstop a drain
  • unstop a sink
  • unstop a bottle
  • unstop a flask

Etymology

English

Formed in English from the prefix 'un-' and 'stop', in the sense of removing what closes or blocks something.

First known use

14th century

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1