Definition

1. Verb (transitive):
   • To move a ship or boat away from a dock; to take a vessel out of a dock.
2. Verb (intransitive):
   • For a ship or boat to move away from a dock; to leave a dock.

Usage

• Transitive verb: The action is performed on the ship. The subject is the person or crew causing the movement.
• Intransitive verb: The action is performed by the ship itself. The subject is the ship.

Examples

• Transitive use:
  • The captain will undock the ship at high tide.
  • Please undock the boat carefully.
• Intransitive use:
  • The ferry is scheduled to undock at 14:00.
  • We watched the cruise liner undock from the harbor.

Advanced Usage

• Computing Context: In computing, "undock" can mean to disconnect a portable device (like a laptop) from a docking station. This is a metaphorical extension of the original nautical term.
  • Remember to undock your laptop before walking away with it.
• Space Context: Used to describe the separation of one spacecraft module from another.
  • The shuttle will undock from the space station tomorrow.

Variants and Related Words

• Dock (verb): The direct opposite action; to bring or come into a dock.
  • The ship will dock in Singapore.
• Undocking (noun): The process or instance of undocking.
  • The undocking was delayed due to weather.
• Moor (verb): To secure a boat with ropes or anchors, not necessarily at a dedicated dock.
• Cast off (phrasal verb): To untie a boat and begin a journey; a synonym in specific contexts.

Synonyms

• Cast off
• Set sail (implies beginning a voyage)
• Leave port
• Pull out (informal)

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Cast off: To release the ropes securing a boat to the shore or dock, allowing it to depart.
  • The crew cast off the lines, and the boat began to drift away.
• Pull away (from): To move a vehicle (including a ship) away from a place.
  • The tugboat helped the large ship pull away from the dock.

Related Idioms

• To slip one's moorings: To become detached or to leave a mooring place, sometimes unexpectedly. This can be used similarly to "undock" in a figurative sense.
  • After the storm, several boats had slipped their moorings.

Verb

1. take (a ship) out of a dock
   • undock the ship
2. move out of a dock
   • We docked at noon