disengage
verb · noun
Simple meaning
Release from something that holds fast, connects.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
dihsihngayjSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
dɪsɪnˈɡeɪdʒ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
ambitransitive
Release from something that holds fast, connects, or entangles
“I want to disengage myself from his influence.”
ambitransitive
To release or loosen from something that binds, entangles, holds, or interlocks.
noun
fencing
A circular movement of the blade that avoids the opponent's parry
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Rare
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Release from something that holds fast, connects, or entangles
Used this way, disengage is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“I want to disengage myself from his influence.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use disengage
- “I want to disengage myself from his influence.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
The act of releasing from an attachment or connection.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.