To unroll means to open or spread out something that has been rolled up. When you unroll a sleeping bag, you take it from its tight coil and lay it flat on the ground. When a medieval messenger unrolled a scroll, the parchment unfurled to reveal its message. You might unroll a yoga mat before class, unroll a poster to hang it on your wall, or watch a garden hose unroll as you pull it across the yard.

The word captures both the action and the result: something compact becomes extended and flat. A new carpet stays tightly rolled until workers unroll it across the floor. A blueprint unrolls on an architect's desk. Even ideas can unroll: when a plan unrolls before you, it reveals itself step by step, like a scroll opening to show more of its contents.

The opposite is roll up, which creates that compact cylinder shape again. Things that commonly unroll include maps, banners, wrapping paper, and ancient documents. The simple act of unrolling often signals the beginning of something: a project starts when you unroll the plans, a performance begins when you roll out the red carpet, or a story unfolds as its scroll unrolls.