undo
To reverse the effects of an action.
Adjective
- Misspelling of undue.
Noun
- An operation that reverses a previous action.
- How many undos does this program support?
Origin
From Middle English undōn, from Old English ondōn, from Proto-West Germanic *andadōn (“to undo”), equivalent to un- + do. Cognate with West Frisian ûndwaan, ûntdwaan (“to undo; rid”), Dutch ontdoen (“to undo”).
Forms
Verb
- To reverse the effects of an action.
- Fortunately, we can undo most of the damage to the system by the war.
- What's done can't be undone.
- Pro.[…]it was a torment / To lay vpon the damn'd, which Sycorax / Could not againe vndoe ; it was mine Art, / When I arriu'd, and heard thee, that made gape / The Pyne, and let thee out. - 1610–1611 (date written),...
- To unfasten.
- Could you undo my buckle for me?
- To unfasten the clothing of (a person).
- PROSTITUTE: Undo me. There's a dear. - 1971, Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde (film)
- To impoverish or ruin, as in reputation; to cause the downfall of.
- Woe is me, for I am undone! - 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC: