Even without a prefix, the verb lösen has quite a few different meanings. Compare the following sentences:

Schon geringste Bewegungen lösen Sediment von den Decken.

Even the slightest movements loosen sediment from the ceilings.

Caption 18, Alpenseen: Kühle Schönheiten

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Ich bin froh, dass die beiden einen Weg gefunden haben, ihre Probleme zu lösen.

I'm glad they found a way to solve their problems.

Caption 54, Die Wohngemeinschaft: Probleme

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...sodass ich mich von allem anderen lösen kann.

...so that I can free myself from everything else.

Caption 48, Sons of Sounds: Open-Air in Karlsruhe

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Also, wir lösen die Bremse, geben Gas, der Schubpropeller schiebt uns.

So, we release the brake, give it gas, the thrust propeller pushes us.

Caption 44, Ultraleicht-Flieger: Der Gyrocopter

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Now let's take a look at the various prefix versions, starting with auslösen, which can mean "to trigger," "to spark," or "to provoke."

Eine wenig schmeichelhafte Stern-Titelstory über Bushido löste Debatten über kriminelle Clans aus.

A hardly flattering Stern cover story about Bushido sparked debates about criminal clans.

Captions 17-18, Jahresrückblick 2013: Deutsche Promis

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Wir haben die erste Stufe bereits ausgelöst.

We have already initiated the first level.

Caption 44, Die Stunde der Offiziere: Dokudrama über den 20. Juli 1944

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The verb auflösen, on the other hand, can mean "to dissolve," "to dissipate," "to disappear," or "to disperse."

Die muss aufgelöst werden im bisschen lauwarmen Wasser.

It has to be dissolved in a bit of lukewarm water.

Caption 16, Bundesländer und ihre Rezepte: Bayern

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Matteo kann sich auch nich' in Luft auflösen.

Matteo can't just disappear into thin air.

Caption 14, Die Pfefferkörner: Alles auf Anfang

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The verb ablösen can mean "to detach," but also "to relieve," as in taking over from someone when doing shift work. In the following sentence, however, this is actually better translated as "we took turns."

Hier für das Wallnau-Projekt haben wir uns immer abgelöst mit'm Filmen.

For the Wallnau project here, we always took turns filming.

Caption 26, Die Insel Fehmarn: Wasservogelreservat Wallnau

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Lastly, the non-separable verb erlösen means "to release," "to redeem," or "to free."

Und dann kamst du und hast mich erlöst, mein Engel.

And then you came and released me, my angel.

Caption 1, Küss mich, Frosch Die Zeiten haben sich geändert - Part 2

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Further Learning
You will find many examples with lösen, auslösen, auflösen, ablösen, and erlösen on Yabla. Here is a longer list of related verbs that you can learn as well.

In a previous Yabla lesson, we discussed the differences between the verbs anheben and aufheben. These separable verbs also look very similar and have meanings related to the base verb heben, which is usually translated as "to lift," or "to raise," and is the Germanic root of the English verb "to heave."

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The verb abheben is usually heard in the context of taking out money from a bank machine or bank account:

Dann erhält man so eine Geldkarte beziehungsweise eine Bankkarte.

Then you receive a debit card or respectively a bank card.

Mit dieser kann man Geld abheben.

With this, you can withdraw money.

Captions 25-26, Eva erklärt - Bankkonten

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Na, wahrscheinlich haben Sie Ihren Kreditrahmen überzogen.

Well, you have probably exceeded your credit limit.

-Ja, zu viel abgehoben.

-Yes, withdrew too much.

Captions 32-33, Weihnachtsfilm - Ein Sack voll Geld

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But abheben is also sometimes heard in the context of an airplane taking off or a rocket launching: 

Und dann heben wir schon ab.

And then we take off already.

Caption 43, Ultraleicht-Flieger - Der Gyrocopter

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Völlig abgehoben, keine Schwerkraft mehr

Completely lifted off, no more gravity

Caption 17, Helene Fischer - Achterbahn

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On the other hand, hochheben is used in quite different contexts: 

Wenn jeder den Deckel hochhebt, dann verdampft doch alles.

If every person lifts the lid, then everything will evaporate, after all.

Caption 33, Marga Engel schlägt zurück - Die neue Köchin

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Die Frau hob das schwere Paket mit einer Hand hoch.
The woman lifted up the heavy package with one hand.

Friedrich hob die Arme hoch.
Friedrich raised up his arms.

Both meanings of abheben are very common, as abheben is both a transitive verb (etwas abheben, which requires an object, usually meaning "to withdraw money") and an intransitive verb ("to take off," which does not allow for an object). Then there is the transitive verb hochheben, which means "to lift or raise something up."

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Further Learning
Go to Yabla German and see the two verbs used in different contexts, and go to the Duden dictionary to read the full definitions of abheben and hochheben, noting the ways that the verbs can be conjugated.

In the English language, many people confuse the words "jealous" and "envious." This occurs in German as well, which can make it even harder to distinguish between the words eifersüchtig and neidisch and know when to use which one. 

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"Jealousy" occurs when the underlying emotion is a fear that someone will take away something that you have. This means that die Eifersucht often occurs in situations involving three people, like in the sentence below:

Was? Nee, nee, das war nur mein Kollege.

What? No, no, that was just my colleaugue.

Nein, das ist kein Grund, eifersüchtig zu sein.

No, it's no reason to be jealous.

Captions 49-50, Großstadtrevier - Von Monstern und Mördern

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Zum ersten Mal in ihrem Leben verspürte sie Stiche von Wut und Eifersucht.

For the first time in her life, she felt stings of anger and jealousy.

Caption 61, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Die Büchse der Pandora

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"Envious" is simply wanting what someone else has or gets to do. In German, there is the noun der Neid, the adjective neidisch, and also the verb jemanden beneiden.

Wütend und neidisch zugleich

Angry and envious at the same time,

stampfte er auf dem Berg der Götter umher.

he stomped around on the Mountain of the Gods.

Caption 14, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Die Büchse der Pandora

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Reinhold Leinberger, den ich heiß darum beneide,

Reinhold Leinberger, whom I envy very much because of it,

der durfte nämlich mit Ihnen fliegen.

was actually permitted to fly with you.

Caption 20, Ultraleicht-Flieger - Der Gyrocopter

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Further Learning
Can you find a video on Yabla German in which eifersüchtig is used, but the speaker actually means neidisch?