un·strung

[uhn-struhng]
verb
1.
simple past tense and past participle of unstring.
adjective
2.
having the string or strings loosened or removed, as a bow or harp.
3.
weakened or nervously unhinged, as a person or a person's nerves; unnerved; discomposed: The incident left him unstrung.
Dictionary.com Unabridged

un·string

[uhn-string]
verb (used with object), un·strung, un·string·ing.
1.
to deprive of strings: to unstring a violin.
2.
to take from a string: to unstring beads.
3.
to loosen the strings of: to unstring a bow.
4.
to relax the tension of.
5.
to relax unduly, or weaken (the nerves).
6.
to weaken the nerves of.
Origin:
1605–15; un-2 + string

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
unstring (ʌnˈstrɪŋ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—vb , -strings, -stringing, -strung
1.  to remove the strings of
2.  (of beads, pearls, etc) to remove or take from a string
3.  to weaken or enfeeble emotionally (a person or his nerves)

unstrung (ʌnˈstrʌŋ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—adj
1.  emotionally distressed; unnerved
2.  (of a stringed instrument) with the strings detached

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

unstrung
1598, "with strings relaxed" (of a harp, etc.), from un- (1) "not" + pp. of string (v.). Transf. sense of "weakened, unnerved" is recorded from 1692.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
Compound bows, long bows and crossbows are broken down if unstrung.
Their disturbed circulation makes them cold, their distress makes them unstrung, sleepless.
Crossbows, slingshots, and bows and arrows must be enclosed in a case or unstrung.
Tired and unstrung as he must be by the devoted labors of the last half-hour, he is in no condition to effect a rescue.
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