wrangle

[ rang-guhl ]
See synonyms for: wranglewrangling on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),wran·gled, wran·gling.
  1. to argue or dispute, especially in a noisy or angry manner.

verb (used with object),wran·gled, wran·gling.
  1. to argue or dispute.

  2. to tend or round up (cattle, horses, or other livestock).

  1. to obtain, often by contrivance or scheming; wangle: He wrangled a job through a friend.

noun
  1. a noisy or angry dispute; altercation.

Origin of wrangle

1
1350–1400; Middle English, apparently <Low German wrangeln, frequentative of wrangen to struggle, make an uproar; akin to wring

Other words for wrangle

Other words from wrangle

  • outwrangle, verb (used with object), out·wran·gled, out·wran·gling.
  • un·wran·gling, adjective

Words that may be confused with wrangle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use wrangle in a sentence

  • I reached Richfield just as Colonel Lewis was setting forth to settle some wrangling between two of his captains.

    A Virginia Scout | Hugh Pendexter
  • What was more, after three days of exasperated wrangling discussion, she surprised them all by bidding them be quiet.

    Happy House | Betsey Riddle, Freifrau von Hutten zum Stolzenberg
  • Harris, wrangling with another workman, was now seen approaching.

    Sue, A Little Heroine | L. T. Meade
  • There may be a wrangling between those two impulses, but as soon as my will stands for the one, the other is really excluded.

    Psychotherapy | Hugo Mnsterberg
  • He had never entered the Vicar's grounds with the intention of either wrangling with the Vicar or his wife.

    The Life of Thomas Wanless, Peasant | Alexander Johnstone Wilson

British Dictionary definitions for wrangle

wrangle

/ (ˈræŋɡəl) /


verb
  1. (intr) to argue, esp noisily or angrily

  2. (tr) to encourage, persuade, or obtain by argument

  1. (tr) Western US and Canadian to herd (cattle or horses)

noun
  1. a noisy or angry argument

Origin of wrangle

1
C14: from Low German wrangeln; related to Norwegian vrangla

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012