unmask

Etymology

From un- + mask.

verb

1. (transitive) To remove a mask from someone.
2. (transitive) To expose, or reveal the true character of someone.
3. (intransitive) To remove one's mask.
   But instead of a direct answer to so important a question, Jones began to be very importunate with the lady to unmask; and at length having prevailed, there appeared not Mrs Fitzpatrick, but the Lady Bellaston herself. 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling
4. (intransitive) To cease engaging in masking, to cease disguising one's autism.
   […] to unmask and to assume her 'natural' role (rather than her 'fitting in' role). 2019, Sarah Cobbe, Simple Autism Strategies for Home and School: Practical Tips, Resources and Poetry, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, page 49
   Autistic females are trying to adhere to social expectations placed upon them, and masking and blending to fit those expectations, […] How do you unmask when you have spent a [long time masking]. 2019, Barry Carpenter, Francesca Happé, Jo Egerton, Girls and Autism: Educational, Family and Personal Perspectives, Routledge, page 172
5. (transitive, military, dated) To expose something that was concealed or shielded from an enemy.
   He recalled his horse. This, retiring, unmasked the heavy infantry, which Hannibal called in from either flank and sent with a vigorous élan in close column across the ford against the ill-arrayed barbarians, followed by the cavalry, which had formed again in its rear. 1893, Theodore Ayrault Dodge, Hannibal: a History of the Art of War Among the Carthaginians and Romans […], page 156
   In less than an hour the batteries were unmasked. The Confederate works were visible and at 5:08 a.m., Seymour ordered the batteries to commence firing. 2021, Stephen R. Wise, “To Capture an Island: Amphibious Operations in the Department of the South, 1861–1863”, in Theodore P. Savas, editor, Charleston: Battles and Seacoast Operations, page 10
6. (transitive, computing) To enable (an interrupt, etc.) by unsetting or setting the associated bit.