'unplug' originates from the prefix 'un-' meaning 'not' or 'reverse' and the word 'plug', which comes from Middle Dutch 'plugge', meaning 'stopper'.

'plugge' transformed into the English word 'plug', and with the addition of the prefix 'un-', it became 'unplug'.

Initially, it meant 'to remove a plug', but over time it evolved to include the broader sense of 'disconnecting from electronic devices'.