tan|gle

tan|gle
tan|gle1 «TANG guhl», verb, -gled, -gling, noun.
–v.t.
1. to twist and twine together in a confused mass; jumble (threads); mat; knot; snarl: »

The kitten had tangled the ball of twine.

SYNONYM(S): entangle, interweave.
2. to hinder, hamper, or obstruct; involve or catch and hold: »

Figurative. tangl'd in the fold Of dire necessity (Milton).

3. Figurative. to mix up; bewilder; confuse: »

He had cut the knot which the Congress had only twisted and tangled (Macaulay).

–v.i.
to be or become tangled: »

Long hair tangles easily.

–n.
1. a confused or tangled mass; knot or jumble: »

The climbing vines are all in a tangle and need to be pruned and tied up.

2. Figurative. a) anything complicated and confused; muddle; puzzle: »

a tangle of words. Her quick temper gets her into one tangle after another.

 b) perplexed state of mind; bewilderment: »

in a tangle of contradictory statements.

3. the condition of being tangled; twistedness; obstructedness; confusion; trapping.
╂[apparently variant of Middle English tagilen entangle < Scandinavian (compare Swedish dialectal taggla to disorder)]
–tan´gler, noun.
tan|gle2 «TANG guhl», noun.
any one of various large seaweeds.
╂[< Scandinavian (compare Old Icelandic thangulr, probably < thang tang3)]

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • tan|gle-legs — «TANG guhl LEHGZ», noun. U.S. 1. a popular name of the hobblebush. 2. Slang. strong beer or liquor …   Useful english dictionary

  • tan|gle|ber|ry — «TANG guhl BEHR ee», noun, plural ries. a huckleberry of the northeastern United States. Also, dangleberry …   Useful english dictionary

  • tan|gle|foot|ed — «TANG guhl FUT ihd», adjective. having tangled feet; stumbling …   Useful english dictionary

  • tan|gle|foot — «TANG guhl FUT», adjective, noun. –adj. complicated; confusing; perplexing. –n. 1. anything tangling or confusing. 2. U.S. Slang. an intoxicating beverage, especially whiskey …   Useful english dictionary

  • tan|gle|ment — «TANG guhl muhnt», noun. 1. the state of being tangled: »When he declared bankruptcy his business affairs were in an awful tanglement. 2. = tangle. (Cf. ↑tangle) …   Useful english dictionary

  • tan|gle|toad — «TANG guhl TOHD», noun. British Dialect. a variety of buttercup with double yellow flowers, that sends out long runners which root themselves …   Useful english dictionary

  • en|tan|gle — «ehn TANG guhl», transitive verb, gled, gling. 1. to get twisted up and caught; tangle: »Threads are easily entangled. He entangled his feet in the coil of rope and fell down. SYNONYM(S): snarl, knot, mat. 2. Figurative. to get into difficulty;… …   Useful english dictionary

  • dis|en|tan|gle|ment — «DIHS ehn TANG guhl muhnt», noun. 1. the act of disentangling. 2. the state of being disentangled …   Useful english dictionary

  • dis|en|tan|gle — «DIHS ehn TANG guhl», verb, gled, gling. –v.t. to free (anything) from tangles or complications; untangle: »to disentangle rope, Figurative. to disentangle fact from fancy. The police tried to disentangle the confused victim s story. SYNONYM(S):… …   Useful english dictionary

  • en|tan|gle|ment — «ehn TANG guhl muhnt», noun. 1. the act of entangling or condition of being entangled: »Figurative. George Washington warned against entanglement with foreign countries. 2. a thing that entangles; snare; something hard to get out of or get… …   Useful english dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”