desenmarañar

to untangle

desenmarañar

transitive verb

1. (to remove the knots from)

a. to untangle

Con infinita paciencia y un cepillo, el padre desenmarañó el largo pelo de la niña.

With infinite patience and a brush, the father untangled the girl's long hair.

b. to disentangle

No dejes que el gato juegue con el ovillo de lana; si no, tendremos que desenmarañarlo.

Don't let the cat play with the ball of wool, otherwise we'll have to disentangle it.

2.

(figurative)

(to solve)

a. to straighten out

Sus mentiras le habían metido en un embrollo que ahora era muy difícil de desenmarañar.

His lies had got him into a mess that was now very difficult to straighten out.

b. to sort out

Es difícil desenmarañar un asunto tan enrevesado como este, con tantas partes implicadas y aspectos a tener en cuenta.

It's difficult to sort out a problem as complex as this one, with so many parties involved and aspects to take into account.

c. to clear up

Fue mi curiosidad la que me llevó a intentar desenmarañar el misterio.

It was my curiosity that led me to try and clear up the mystery.

d. to unravel

Tras dos años de investigaciones, la policía consiguió desenmarañar el complejo entramado que rodeaba al asesinato.

After two years of investigations, the police managed to unravel the complex web surrounding the murder.

e. to resolve

Si queremos desenmarañar el problema, debemos empezar por hacernos las preguntas adecuadas.

If we want to resolve the problem, we must start by asking the right questions.