unbutton
verb/ʌnˈbʌtən/
Etymology From Middle English onbottonen, unbotonen; equivalent to un- + button.
1
Ambitransitive To open (something) by undoing its buttons.
- Being now too high wound up to bear a delay, he unbutton'd, and drawing out the engine of love-assaults, drove it currently, as at a ready-made breach1749, [John Cleland], “(Please specify the letter or volume)”, in Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure [Fanny Hill], London: […] [Thomas Parker] for G. Fenton [i.e., Fenton and Ralph Griffiths] […], →OCLC:
- "Mr Baxter, I think?" said the latter. He had laid aside his dripping umbrella and was unbuttoning overcoat and coat to reach an inner pocket.1914, Ernest Bramah, Max Carrados:
2
Ergative To come open by having its buttons unfastened.
- He was so muscled and firm, and the canvas shirt under his jacket unbuttoned easily.2010, Janet Chapman, Tempt Me If You Can, page 70:
- Derived terms
- unbuttonable
- Related terms
- unbuttoned