Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Undoing |
UndoingNoun1. An act that makes a previous act of no effect (as if not done). 2. Loosening the ties that fasten something; "the tying of bow ties is an art; the untying is easy". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "undoing" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1350. (references) |
Synonyms: UndoingSynonyms: unfastening (n), untying (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Adversity | Losing game; falling; Verb: fall, downfall; ruination, ruinousness; undoing; extremity; ruin; (destruction). |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Undoing |
| English words defined with "undoing": destroy, destruct. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "undoing": Antelope ♦ backout, Bite ♦ Corset ♦ Gambling-house ♦ Nymph ♦ tariff ♦ undoing of a command ♦ Vaccinate ♦ Writing. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "undoing": Defeature. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Clever | To think too long about doing a thing often becomes its undoing. (references; author: unknown) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Undoing Evil (1917) The Undoing of Slim Bill (1912) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
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Theater & Movies | |||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Euripides | That glittering hope is immemorial and beckons many men to their undoing. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Author | Date | Quotation |
John F. Kennedy | 1961 | Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans--born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage--and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world. (reference) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | TARIFF, n. A scale of taxes on imports, designed to protect the domestic producer against the greed of his consumer. The Enemy of Human Souls Sat grieving at the cost of coals; For Hell had been annexed of late, And was a sovereign Southern State. "It were no more than right," said he, "That I should get my fuel free. The duty, neither just nor wise, Compels me to economize -- Whereby my broilers, every one, Are execrably underdone. What would they have? -- although I yearn To do them nicely to a turn, I can't afford an honest heat. This tariff makes even devils cheat! I'm ruined, and my humble trade All rascals may at will invade: Beneath my nose the public press Outdoes me in sulphureousness; The bar ingeniously applies To my undoing my own lies; My medicines the doctors use (Albeit vainly) to refuse To me my fair and rightful prey And keep their own in shape to pay; The preachers by example teach What, scorning to perform, I teach; And statesmen, aping me, all make More promises than they can break. Against such competition I Lift up a disregarded cry. Since all ignore my just complaint, By Hokey-Pokey! I'll turn saint!" Now, the Republicans, who all Are saints, began at once to bawl Against his competition; so There was a devil of a go! They locked horns with him, tete-a-tete In acrimonious debate, Till Democrats, forlorn and lone, Had hopes of coming by their own. That evil to avert, in haste The two belligerents embraced; But since 'twere wicked to relax A tittle of the Sacred Tax, 'Twas finally agreed to grant The bold Insurgent-protestant A bounty on each soul that fell Into his ineffectual Hell. Edam Smith |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Undoing" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 57.69% of the time. "Undoing" is used about 130 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 57.69% | 75 | 38,535 |
| Lexical Verb (-ing form) | 42.31% | 55 | 45,713 |
| Total | 100.00% | 130 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "undoing": undoing of a command ♦ undoing stitches. Additional references. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day |
depression undoing | 3 |
bra undoing | 3 |
racism undoing | 2 |
generation un undoing | 2 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Language | Translations for "undoing"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Albanian | zgjidhje (annulling, answer, canceling, denouement, disentanglement, disposal, disposition, key, resolution, settlement, solution, unfastening, untying), zbërthim (analysis, decomposition, diffraction, disintegration, dismounting, dispersion, dissolution, pulling apart, resolution, unbuttoning, unnailing), shthurje (depravity, dissipation, laxity, lecherousness, lechery, profligacy, unbraiding, venery), shkopsitje, asgjësim (annihilation, erasure, extermination, extirpation, liquidation, rasure, ravage, squelch). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | حل (acquit, become, clear up, crack, detach, disband, disengage, disentangle, disintegrate, dismissal, dispensation, dissolve, exonerate, fix, free, hash, loose, ravel out, releasing, resolution, resolve, settle, settlement, settling, solution, solve, solvent, unbend, unclasp, uncoil, undo, unfasten, unfastening, unhook, untangle, untie, untwine, untying, unwind), خراب (bane, decay, demolition, desolation, destruction, devastation, dilapidation, havoc, perdition, rack, ravage, ruin, ruination, wrack, wreck, wreckage). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bulgarian | разкопчаване, развързване, разваляне (contamination, deformation, depravation, mutilation, vitiation), гибел (death, disaster, doom, fate, grave, perdition, ruin, ruination, shipwreck, subversion), отваряне (opening), отменяне (abatement, annulment, cancellation, recall, recision, repeal, rescission, retractation, reversal, revocation, withdrawal), опропастяване (ruin), премахване (abolishment, abolition, deletion, disposal, obliteration, removal, retrenchment), погубване, поправяне (mending, recension, reclamation, rectification, redress, reformation, reinstatement, renovation, reparing, retrieval, trimming). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 解开 (Disengaged, Disengaging, unbuckle, Undid, undo, undone, unfasten, unfastened, unfastening, unhook, Unhooked, unleash, Unlink, unravel, untangle, untangled, untangling, untie, untied, Untighten, untying, unwind, unwinding, unwound, unwrap, unwrapped). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Czech | uvolnìní (disengagement, easing, relaxation, release, relief, thaw, vacation), zkáza (annihilation, corruption, destruction, perdition, pulverization, ruin, subversion), záhuba (bane, doom, perdition, ruin). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Danish | ophæve kommando (command invalidation, undo, undoing of a command), fortryde kommando (command invalidation, undo, undoing of a command), fortryde (command invalidation, undo, undoing of a command). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dutch | annulatie van een opdracht (command invalidation, undo, undoing of a command). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Finnish | se vei hänet turmioon (it was his undoing), peruutus (annulment, cancellation, withdrawal), peruminen (command invalidation, undo, undoing of a command), komennon peruutus (command invalidation, undo, undoing of a command), komennon peruminen (command invalidation, undo, undoing of a command), alkoholi oli hänen tuhonsa (drink was his undoing). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | ruine, perte. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | abbindend. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | καταστροφή (catastrophe, destruction, devastation, disaster, mayhem, rack, ravage, ruin, wreckage), ξεκούμπωμα. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hebrew | חסול (annihilation, extermination, liquidation, winding up). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hungarian | visszacsinálás, tönkretevés (destruction), felfejtés. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | rovina (bad, bane, bust, decay, destruction, disrepair, havoc, rack, ravage, rot, ruin, ruination, smash up). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Korean | 원상태로 돌림. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manx | skeaylley (bestrew, breed, cast loose, demobilization, diffract, diffuse, diffusion, disband, discharge, dismiss, dispel, disseminate, dissipate, dissipation, dissolution, dissolve, draw apart, drop away, leakage, liquidate, looseness, release, resolution, resolve, run out, scatter, scattering, scramble, slacken, slackening, slip, spread, spreading, spring, sprinkle, sprinkling, unfix, unfurl, unfurling), rassey (cancellation; seed, demolish; tearing, rend, rending, rip, rip up, scratch, tear, undo, undo as knitting). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | oingunday ruína (breakdown, cloud-burst, collapse, confusion, crash, curse, decay, destruction, deterioration, devastation, dilapidation, disreputable, doom, downfall, lurch, overthrow, overturn, perdu, rack, ravage, ruin, ruination, shipwreck, smash, upset, waste, wrack, wreck), perda (bereavement, confusion, damage, deprivation, forfeit, forgather, leak-proof, loss, misbirth, miscarry, Miss, offscourings, perdition, prejudice, privation, ruination, seepage, wastage, waste, wreck), destruição (bale, consumption, defacement, demolition, deprivation, destruction, doom, frustum, havoc, holograph, overthrow, rack, ravage, ruin, ruination, spoliation, wrack, wreck, wreckage, wrecking), desgraça (adversity, bane, blow, cloud, contempt, disaster, disgrace, distress, misfortune, reproach, tragedy), anulação (abrogation, annulment, avoidance, cancel, cancellation, defeasance, defeat, deletion, dissolve, lickspittle, nullifications, recall, repeal, rescission, revocation). (various references) pierzanie (loss, perdition). (various references) уничтожение (abolition, annihilation, annulment, demolition, destruction, eradication, extermination, nullification, obliteration, ravage, spoliation), гибель (death, doom, perdition, ruin, ruination), аннулирование (abatement, annulment, cancellation, defeasance, defeat, invalidation, nullification, nullity, repeal, rescission, write off, writeoff). (various references) upropašćenje, uništenje (annihilation, blight, breaking up, extirpation, obliteration, rack, wreckage), ukidanje (nullification, recession, repeal, rescission, reversal, suppression, suspension), raspakivanje. (various references) ruina (bankruptcy, destruction, downfall, rape, ruin, ruination, wreck), el deshacer. (various references) upplösande (disruptive, dissolving), fördärv (bane, blight, corruption, destruction, fate, perdition, perversity, ruin, taint). (various references) yıkım (bad, bane, blight, cropper, damnation, death, debacle, demolition, disaster, havoc, ravage, ruin, wrecking), telâfi (amends, atonement, compensation, condonation, redress, reparation), felâket (affliction, bane, blight, blow, calamity, calvary, casualty, cataclysm, catastrophe, debacle, disaster, distress, fatality, fate, harm, hell, hell of, helluva, misfortune, mishap, plague, scathe, scourge, tragedy), bozulma (breach, breakdown, breakup, confusion, corrosion, corruption, decay, declension, decomposition, deformation, degeneration, degradation, derogation, deterioration, devolution, disfiguration, disfigurement, disruption, dissolution, impairment, infection, pollution, putrefaction, rancidity, rancidness, rottenness, shipwreck, spoilage, taint, upset), açma (clearance, disclosure, inauguration, opening, spreading), çözme (disengaging, solving, untieing, working out). (various references) розв'язування (extrication), знищення (abolishment, abolition, annulment, defeasance, demolition, dispersion, extermination, extirpation, holocaust, obliteration), загибель (bad, bane, blasting, catastrophe, collapse, death, destruction, doom, ending, fate, overthrow, perdition, ruin, wreck, wreckage). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Language | Date | Source | Ecclesiastes Chapter 3, Verse 7 |
| Greek (transliterated) | 250 BC | Septuagint | KairoV tou rhxai kai kairoV tou rayai kairoV tou sigan kai kairoV tou lalein |
| Latin | 405 | Vulgate | Tempus scindendi et tempus consuendi tempus tacendi et tempus loquendi |
| Middle English | 1395 | Wyclif | Time of kutting, and time of souwing togidere; time of holding pes, and time of speking. |
| Jacobean English | 1611 | King James | A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; |
| Victorian English | 1833 | Webster | A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; |
| Basic English | 1964 | Ogden | A time for undoing and a time for stitching; a time for keeping quiet and a time for talk; |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Ecclesiastes Chapter 3, Verse 7 |
| Cebuano | Panahon sa paggisi, ug panahon sa pagtahi; panahon sa paghilum ug panahon sa pagsulti; |
| Chinese | ' 裂 有 時 、 縫 補 有 時 ． 靜 默 有 時 、 言 語 有 時 ． |
| Croatian | Vrijeme deranja i vrijeme š§ijenja; vrijeme šutnje i vrijeme govorenja. |
| Danish | Tid til at flænge og Tid til at sy, Tid til at tie og Tid til at tale, |
| Dutch | Een tijd om te scheuren, en een tijd om toe te naaien; een tijd om te zwijgen, en een tijd om te spreken; |
| Finnish | Aika on reväistä rikki ja aika ommella yhteen. Aika on olla vaiti ja aika puhua. |
| French | un temps pour déchirer, et un temps pour coudre; un temps pour se taire, et un temps pour parler; |
| German | zerreißen und zunähen, schweigen und reden, |
| Haitian Creole | lè pou ou dechire, lè pou ou koud, lè pou ou rete san pale, lè pou ou pale. |
| Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari | waktu untuk merobek dan waktu untuk menjahit, waktu untuk berdiam diri dan waktu untuk berbicara. |
| Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama | adalah masa akan mencarik-carik dan masa akan menampal; adalah masa akan berdiam diri dan masa akan berkata-kata; |
| Italian | Un tempo per stracciare e un tempo per cucire, un tempo per tacere e un tempo per parlare. |
| Maori | He wa e haehae ai, he wa e tuitui ai; he wa e whakarongo puku ai, he wa e korero ai; |
| Norwegian | å sønderrive har sin tid og å sy sammen har sin tid; å tie har sin tid og å tale har sin tid; |
| Portuguese | tempo de rasgar, e tempo de coser; tempo de estar calado, e tempo de falar; |
| Rumanian | ruptul kwi are vremea lui, wi cusutul kwi are vremea lui; tqcerea kwi are vremea ei, wi vorbirea kwi are vremea ei; |
| Russian | ЧТЕНС ТБЪ"ЙТБФШ, Й ЧТЕНС УЫЙЧБФШ; ЧТЕНС НПМЮБФШ, Й ЧТЕНС ЗПЧПТЙФШ; |
| Spanish | tiempo de romper y tiempo de coser; tiempo de callar y tiempo de hablar; |
| Swedish | Riva sönder har sin tid, och sy ihop har sin tid. Tiga har sin tid, och tala har sin tid. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "undoing": undoings. (additional references) | |
| |
"Undoing" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Indovina, Ndong, Nurofin, uding, undoings, Undong. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "undoing" (pronounced unduw"ing) |
| 4 | -d uw" i ng | Dewing, doing, overdoing, redoing, subduing. |
| 3 | -uw" i ng | accruing, bluing, booing, brewing, canoeing, chewing, cooing, debuting, eschewing, hewing, pursuing, queuing, renewing, reviewing, screwing, skewing, spewing, stewing, suing, tattooing, viewing, wooing. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "d-g-i-n-n-o-u" | |
-1 letter: guidon. | |
-2 letters: dingo, doing, union. | |
-3 letters: ding, dong, dung, guid, nodi, noun, undo. | |
-4 letters: dig, din, dog, don, dug, dui, dun, duo, gid, gin, gnu, god, gun, inn, ion, nod, nog, nun, oud, udo. | |
-5 letters: do, go, id, in, no, nu, od, on, un. | |
| Words containing the letters "d-g-i-n-n-o-u" | |
+1 letter: bounding, founding, hounding, mounding, pounding, rounding, sounding, undoings, wounding. | |
+2 letters: abounding, conducing, foundling, grounding, iguanodon, loudening, obtunding, soundings, stounding, swounding, undocking, unfolding, unhooding, unloading, unmolding. | |
+3 letters: adjourning, astounding, coenduring, cofounding, concluding, conducting, demounting, denouncing, dungeoning, expounding, foundering, foundlings, groundings, groundling, gudgeoning, guerdoning, iguanodons, impounding, inbounding, indigenous, outdancing, outfinding, outgrinned, outwinding, rebounding, redounding, refounding, resounding, soundingly, unclouding, underdoing, undergoing, undoubling, undoubting, unrounding. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Hexadecimal (or equivalents, 770AD-1900s) (references)55 6E 64 6F 69 6E 67 |
| Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519; backwards) (references)
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| American Sign Language (origins from 1620-1817 in Italy and, especially, France) (references)
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| Semaphore (1791, in France) (references)
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| Braille (1829, in France) (references)
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Morse Code (1836) (references)..- -. -.. --- .. -. --. |
| Dancing Men (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1903) (references)
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Binary Code (1918-1938, probably earlier) (references)01010101 01101110 01100100 01101111 01101001 01101110 01100111 |
HTML Code (1990) (references)U n d o i n g |
ISO 10646 (1991-1993) (references)0055 006E 0064 006F 0069 006E 0067 |
| British Sign Language (Fingerspelling, BSL; 1992, British Deaf Association Dictionary of British Sign Language) (references)
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Encryption (beginner's substitution cypher): (references)55807081758073 |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Quotations: Familiar 7. Quotations: Historic 8. Quotations: Non-fiction | 9. Usage Frequency 10. Expressions 11. Expressions: Internet 12. Translations: Modern | 13. Bible Trace 14. Derivations 15. Rhymes 16. Anagrams | 17. Orthography 18. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
