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tangle

 [tang-guhl]   Example Sentences Origin

tan·gle

1   [tang-guhl] verb, tan·gled, tan·gling, noun
verb (used with object)
1.
to bring together into a mass of confusedly interlaced or intertwisted threads, strands, or other like parts; snarl.
2.
to involve in something that hampers, obstructs, or overgrows: The bushes were tangled with vines.
3.
to catch and hold in or as if in a net or snare.
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verb (used without object)
4.
to be or become tangled.
5.
Informal. to come into conflict; fight or argue: I don't want to tangle with him over the new ruling.

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Tangle is one of our favorite verbs.
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chat, to converse
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noun
6.
a tangled condition or situation.
7.
a tangled or confused mass or assemblage of something.
8.
a confused jumble: a tangle of contradictory statements.
9.
Informal. a conflict; disagreement: He got into a tangle with the governor.
Origin:
1300–50; Middle English tangilen, tagilen to entangle < Scandinavian; compare Swedish (dial.) taggla to disarrange

Related forms
tan·gle·ment, noun
tan·gler, noun
tan·gly, adverb

Synonyms
8. snarl, net, labyrinth, maze.

Example Sentences
  • No more cables connecting the whole thing that tangle a soldier up.
  • From a global economic perspective, a tangle of such deals is far inferior to freer multilateral trade.
  • The new self-coiling hoses won't tangle or kink, and they store neatly, but they aren't flawless.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged

tan·gle

2   [tang-guhl]
noun
any of several large seaweeds of the genus Laminaria.
Origin:
1530–40; < Scandinavian; compare Old Norse thǫngull strand of tangle, Norwegian tang
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To Tangle
Collins
World English Dictionary
tangle1 (ˈtæŋɡəl)
 
—n
1.  a confused or complicated mass of hairs, lines, fibres, etc, knotted or coiled together
2.  a complicated problem, condition, or situation
 
—vb (often foll by with)
3.  to become or cause to become twisted together in a confused mass
4.  to come into conflict; contend: to tangle with the police
5.  (tr) to involve in matters which hinder or confuse: to tangle someone in a shady deal
6.  (tr) to ensnare or trap, as in a net
 
[C14 tangilen, variant of tagilen, probably of Scandinavian origin; related to Swedish dialect taggla to entangle]
 
'tanglement1
 
—n
 
'tangler1
 
—n
 
'tangly1
 
—adj

tangle or tangle weed2 (ˈtæŋɡəl)
 
—n
alternative names (esp Scot) for oarweed
 
[C16: of Scandinavian origin: compare Danish tang seaweed]
 
tangle weed or tangle weed2
 
—n
 
[C16: of Scandinavian origin: compare Danish tang seaweed]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

tangle
mid-14c., nasalized variant of tagilen "to involve in a difficult situation, entangle," from a Scand. source (cf. dialectal Swed. taggla "to disorder," O.N. þongull "seaweed"). In ref. to material things, from c.1500. Meaning "to fight with" is Amer.Eng., first recorded 1928. The noun is first
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recorded 1615, "a tangled condition." Tanglefoot (1859) was Western Amer.Eng. slang for "strong whiskey."
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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