unspool

verb

un·​spool ˌən-ˈspül 

unspooled; unspooling; unspools

transitive verb

1

: to unwind from a spool

unspool the cable

2

: to execute or present artfully or gracefully

unspooled a jump shot

unspooling an intricate tale

intransitive verb

: to be presented or revealed on or as if on a movie screen

Examples of unspool in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The new partners also announced that their joint Worlds Collide event will unspool June 7 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles featuring Superstars from WWE & AAA. —Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 21 Apr. 2025

The 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival will unspool Nov. 7-23 in the Estonian capital. —Annika Pham, Variety, 15 Apr. 2025

Affair warning: The Delray Affair will unspool over seven city blocks along Atlantic Avenue in downtown Delray Beach this weekend, with hundreds of artists and makers displaying work, plus live music, the popular Beer & Wine Garden on Old School Square and an infectious joie de vivre. —Ben Crandell, Sun Sentinel, 3 Apr. 2025

During a lunar eclipse, Earth’s shadow slowly unspools across the face of the full moon. —Stephanie Vermillion, Outside Online, 4 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1940, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for unspool

• ampoule
• bascule
• carpool
• cesspool
• ferrule
• footstool
• guayule
• lobule
• misrule
• preschool
• pustule
• whirlpool