tanglen.1
/ˈtaŋɡ(ə)l/ 1. A general term for the larger seaweeds, species of Fucus and allied genera; = tang n.3 Often sea-tangle. (In spite of the chronology of the attestations, probably in origin an extended use of sense 2.)
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > algae > seaweed > [noun] > fucus seaweeds > tangle
hangera1483
tanglec1540
tang1547
sea-ragged-staff1633
tangle-wrack1721
sea-cabbage1764
prickly tang1795
yellow tang1809
tangle-weed1825
fucoid1848
saw-wrack1868
tangle-work1890
c1540 J. Bellenden in tr. H. Boece Hyst. & Cron. Scotl. sig. Ciiijv Maister Alexander Galloway..liftet vp ane see tangle, hyngand full of mussill schellis fra the rute to the branchis.
1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1888) I. 62 He saw bred of a sey tangle, mussilis.
1603 P. Holland tr. Plutarch Morals 676 It hath gotten about the keele a deale of mosse, reits, kilpe, and tangle.
1665 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 1 13 Upon which..Rock-weed or Sea-tangle did grow a hand long.
1744 T. Preston in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 43 61 There are Plenty of Sea-weeds, called Tangle, growing on the Rocks, of which might be made Kelp.
1895 S. R. Crockett Men of Moss-hags lii Certain..persons were carrying away sea-tangle from his foreshore.
2. spec. Either of two species of seaweed, Laminaria ( Fucus L.) digitata and L. saccharina, having long leathery fronds, the young stalk and fronds of which are sometimes eaten. (This is the Norse sense, and probably the proper one.)
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > fruit and vegetables > vegetables > seaweed > [noun]
slawkc1450
henware1682
dulse1698
pepper dulse1724
tangle1724
slokan1758
green laver1762
sloke1777
carrageen1830
Irish moss1830
parengo1844
kombu1884
wakame1950
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular vegetables > [noun] > edible seaweeds
slawkc1450
laver1611
badderlocks1620
hempweed1620
henware1682
dulse1698
tangle1724
slokan1758
sloke1777
honey-ware1827
carrageen1830
Irish moss1830
pearl moss1832
Ceylon moss1861
kombu1884
sea-moss1891
sheep-seaweed1895
hijiki1951
1724 A. Ramsay Tea-table Misc. (1733) I. 91 Scrapt haddocks, wilks, dulse and tangle.
1807 J. V. Thompson Catal. Plants Berwick upon Tweed 112 Fucus digitatus, Fingered Fucus; Tangle.
1820 W. Scott Monastery I. Answ. Introd. Ep. 69 I never saw it cast ashore any thing but dulse and tangle.
1845 T. Edmondston Flora of Shetland 54 Laminaria digitata is by them [the Orcadian peasantry] termed Tangle.
1846 J. Lindley Veg. Kingdom 21 The young stalks of Laminaria digitata and saccharina are eaten under the name of ‘tangle’.
1875 J. H. Balfour in Encycl. Brit. I. 508/2 Dulse and tangle was formerly a common cry in the streets of Edinburgh.
Compounds
C1. General attributive.
tangle-strewn adj.
ΚΠ
1882 Good Cheer 41 Cool sea scented breezes came up from the tangle-strewn sands.
tangle-tasselled adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > algae > seaweed > [adjective] > of or belonging to type of seaweed > covered with tangle
tangly1769
tangle-tasselled1812
tang-covered1888
1812 W. Tennant Anster Fair i. xxvi. 14 Up-popp'd from sea, a tangle-tassel'd shape.
C2.
tangle-fish n. a popular name of the needle-fish or pipe-fish, Syngnathus acus.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > superorder Acanthopterygii (spiny fins) > order Perciformes (perches) > order Gasterosteiformes (sticklebacks) > [noun] > family Syngnathidae (pipe-fish) > syngnathus acus (needle-fish)
needlefish1601
stang1803
tangle-fish1838
1838 Parnell in Mem. Werner. Soc. VII. 394 Syngnathus acus, Tangle-Fish, Scotland, [so called] by the fishermen, in consequence of its being found under seaweed, which they call tangle.
tangle-picker n. a bird, the Turnstone ( Strepsilas interpres).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Charadriiformes > family Scolopacidae (snipes, etc.) > [noun] > arenaria interpres (turnstone)
sea-lark1602
turnstone1674
sea-dotterel1676
stone-pecker1731
whale-bird1771
bullfinch plover1864
tangle-picker1882
turkey-bird1885
jinny1888
sparked back (plover)1888
1882 W. Yarrell Hist. Brit. Birds (ed. 4) III. 290 Searching among sea-weed for its food: whence its appropriate Norfolk name of ‘Tangle-picker’.
tangle-tent n. in surgery, a tent or pledget of seaweed.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical appliances or equipment > equipment for treating wound or ulcer > [noun] > plug, pad, or swab
pillowa1400
plumaciola1400
tentc1400
pulvillus?a1425
pledget?1540
spledget1563
penicillus1575
dossil1585
splint1607
plager1656
penicil1657
sindon1657
wick1658
pad1767
tampon1848
tangle-tent1879
Gamgee pad1885
plombe1904
1879 J. M. Duncan Clin. Lect. Dis. Women i. 4 The cervix [uteri] was dilated by tangle-tent.
tangle-weed n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > algae > seaweed > [noun] > fucus seaweeds > tangle
hangera1483
tanglec1540
tang1547
sea-ragged-staff1633
tangle-wrack1721
sea-cabbage1764
prickly tang1795
yellow tang1809
tangle-weed1825
fucoid1848
saw-wrack1868
tangle-work1890
1825 G. F. Lyon Brief Narr. Attempt to reach Repulse Bay 65 The sea was much agitated, a great quantity of tangle weed floating about.
1836 D. Donovan in M. Scott Cruise Midge i. 18 Far down amongst the tangleweed and coral branches at the bottom of the deep green sea.
1870 J. Lauder Warblings of Caged Bird 37 Whaur the stanes are green wi' moss And the tangle weeds are plenty.
tangle-work n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > algae > seaweed > [noun] > fucus seaweeds > tangle
hangera1483
tanglec1540
tang1547
sea-ragged-staff1633
tangle-wrack1721
sea-cabbage1764
prickly tang1795
yellow tang1809
tangle-weed1825
fucoid1848
saw-wrack1868
tangle-work1890
1890 W. Pater Wks. (1901) VIII. 23 All around the gulf there is but an expanse of tanglework.
tangle-wrack n. = sense 1.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > algae > seaweed > [noun] > fucus seaweeds > tangle
hangera1483
tanglec1540
tang1547
sea-ragged-staff1633
tangle-wrack1721
sea-cabbage1764
prickly tang1795
yellow tang1809
tangle-weed1825
fucoid1848
saw-wrack1868
tangle-work1890
1721 A. Ramsay Prospect of Plenty 228 Wild shores..Plenish'd with nought but shells and tangle-wreck.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1910; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
tanglen.2
/ˈtaŋɡ(ə)l/ 1.
a. A tangled condition, or concrete a tangled mass; a complication of threads, hairs, fibres, branches, boughs, or the like, confusedly intertwined or interlaced, or of a single long thread, line, or rope, involved in coils, loops, and knots; a snarl, ravel, or complicated loose knot. Also transferred of streams, paths, etc. similarly intertwisted or confused.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > order > disorder > confusion or disorder > entanglement or entangled state > [noun]
implicationc1430
implicamentc1450
imployment1598
implicity1602
tangle1615
illigation1656
perplexity1664
entanglement1687
intertwisting1753
intertanglement1817
tanglement1831
ravelment1833
bewilderment1844
intertwist1870
betanglement1881
1615 W. Lawson Country Housewifes Garden (1626) 20 That it [the soil] may run among the small tangles [of the roots] without straining or bruising.
1638 J. Milton Lycidas in Obsequies 22 in Justa Edouardo King To sport with Amaryllis in the shade, Hid in the tangles of Neera's hair?
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost ix. 632 Hee [sc. the serpent] leading swiftly rowld In tangles, and made intricate seem strait, To mischief swift. View more context for this quotation
a1774 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued (1777) III. i. 88 If upon combing his head he meets with a tangle that tears off two or three hairs.
1842 Darwin in Life & Lett. (1887) I. 321 This bow became covered with a tangle of creepers.
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. xxix. 378 The rise and fall of the tides always breaks up the ice..in a tangle of irregular, half-floating masses.
1861 E. D. Cook Paul Foster's Daughter vii One of a small tangle of courts between Long Acre and New Street, Covent Garden.
1873 E. E. Hale In his Name v. 26 In a tangle of low, scrubby oaks.
1879 M. D. Conway Demonol. I. iii. ix. 386 The Gorgon's head..with its fearful tangle of serpent tresses.
1910 N.E.D. at Tangle Mod. This string is all in a tangle.
b. spec. A dredger for sweeping the sea-bed, consisting of a bar to which are attached a number of hempen ‘mops’, in the fibres of which the more delicate marine specimens are entangled.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > other specific types of equipment > [noun] > equipment for use on seabed
creeper?a1400
tangle1882
creep1889
Petersen grab1923
snapper grab1925
sled1939
piston sampler1946
piston core sampler1947
piston corer1954
hydrocast1960
the world > life > biology > laboratory analysis > material > [noun] > sample > tool for collecting samples
tangle1882
bottom sampler1898
slit sampler1941
1882 D. C. Beard Amer. Boy's Handy Bk. xi. 88 The Tangle, a name given to tassels of hemp that are often attached to the bottom of the dredge itself or used separately.
1883 A. Leslie tr. A. E. Nordenskiöld Voy. Vega (new ed.) 97 The hempen tangles were used, and brought up a very abundant yield of large, beautiful animal forms.
1884 Science 4 227/2 The true province of the tangles is a very rocky bottom, where neither the dredge nor trawl can be safely used.
2. figurative. A complicated and confused assemblage; a muddle, jumble, complication, medley, puzzle; a confused network of opinions, facts, etc.; also, a perplexed state.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > difficulty > types of difficulty > [noun] > difficulty or complexity > instance of > and confused
snarl1631
tangle1757
twaddle1785
an ill-favoured pirn1828
muddle1857
fankle1890
tie-up1906
snarl-up1960
the world > relative properties > order > disorder > confusion or disorder > entanglement or entangled state > [noun] > that which is entangled > a tangle
node1572
knarl1598
snarl1609
rivel1625
ravel1634
snick-snarl1649
mare1688
harla1697
tangle1757
round turn1769
fankle1824
twist1858
twitter1876
taut1887
1757 J. Dyer Fleece ii. 69 And silent, in the tangles soft involv'd Of death-like sleep.
1800 S. T. Coleridge tr. F. Schiller Death Wallenstein ii. iii. 45 Where's he that will unravel This tangle, ever tangling more and more?
1858 E. H. Sears Athanasia iii. x. 330 The tangles of metaphysics in which they sought to involve the great Apostle.
1866 J. H. Newman Dream of Gerontius v. 42 Methinks I know To disengage the tangle of thy words.
1873 J. Morley Rousseau II. 126 The complex tangle of the history of social growths.
1883 T. Martin Life Ld. Lyndhurst xi. 285 The skill with which he reduced into method and compass the enormous tangle of facts and figures.
Compounds
C1. Generalattributive = in a tangle, tangled.
a.
tangle-twine n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > stem or stalk > [noun] > twining or trailing
bindc1400
vine1563
twine1579
tangle-twine1878
the world > relative properties > order > disorder > confusion or disorder > entanglement or entangled state > [noun] > that which is entangled > tangled mass
matting?1615
wreath1648
scurry1839
jungle1850
fog1869
tangle-twine1878
tardle1898
snaggle1904
1878 R. Browning La Saisiaz 94 The wreaths, Tangle-twine of leaf and bloom.
tangle-twist n.
ΚΠ
1889 Chicago Advance 6 June 'Twould take ten miles o' this here tangletwist to make one.
tangle-wood n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by habit > tree or woody plant > wood or assemblage of trees or shrubs > [noun] > brushwood, scrub, or underwood
ronea1300
underwooda1325
rammel1338
brushetc1380
scroga1400
bushailec1400
frithing1429
brushal1430
brushc1440
ronec1440
thevec1440
garsil1483
shroga1500
cablish1594
south-bois1598
undergrowth1600
frith1605
hand timber1664
subbois1664
urith1671
brushwood1732
bush-wood1771
underbrush1775
slop1784
woodiness1796
scrub1805
shag1836
chaparral1845
underbush1849
underscrub1870
sand-brush1871
buck-brush1874
bush1879
horizontal scrub1888
tangle-wood1894
shin-tangle1905
1894 Chicago Advance 26 Apr. He scuttled off in a wild panic through the thick tanglewood.
b.
tangle-haired adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > hair > types of hair > [adjective] > tangled
tattered1340
unkempt?a1439
dishevelc1450
tatty1513
tautyc1560
feltered1567
dishevelled1582
elf-locked1647
tatted1716
tauted1786
matty-haired1824
tangle-haired1861
draggle-haired1865
tangle-headed1884
waulked1894
natty1974
1861 L. L. Noble After Icebergs 68 They were a russet, tangle-haired and shaggy-bearded set.
tangle-headed adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > hair > types of hair > [adjective] > tangled
tattered1340
unkempt?a1439
dishevelc1450
tatty1513
tautyc1560
feltered1567
dishevelled1582
elf-locked1647
tatted1716
tauted1786
matty-haired1824
tangle-haired1861
draggle-haired1865
tangle-headed1884
waulked1894
natty1974
1884 ‘M. Twain’ Adventures Huckleberry Finn xv. 119 I think you're a tangle-headed old fool, Jim.
1908 Westm. Gaz. 15 Aug. 15/3 A gipsy woman, with tangle-headed children, carrying faggots on their backs.
tangle-tailed adj.
ΚΠ
1883 W. G. Collingwood Philos. Ornament v. 121 The builders of early Italian cathedrals..now run wild with the northern tangle-tailed mysteries.
C2.
tangle-swab n. one of the mops of a tangle for dredging (sense 1b).
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > collection or conservation of natural specimens > [noun] > equipment for collecting or preserving > of marine life > part of
tangle-swab1884
1884 Science 4 148/1 Several tangle-swabs were generally attached to the hinder end of the bag.
1884 Science 4 227/2 The use of hempen tangle-swabs attached to the dredge was introduced by the English exploring-steamer Porcupine in 1868 or 1869.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1910; most recently modified version published online September 2021).
tanglen.3
/ˈtaŋɡ(ə)l/, U.S. /ˈtæŋɡ(ə)l/, Scottish English /ˈtaŋ(ɡ)(ə)l/ Scottish and northern dialect.
1. A pendent icicle. Scottish.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > water > ice > body of ice > [noun] > icicle
ickleeOE
icicleOE
cocklebella1500
pipe1556
shockle1596
tanglea1646
ice needle1831
a1646 D. Wedderburn Vocabula (1685) 34 Stiria, a tangle of yce.
1813 E. Picken Misc. Poems I. 77 (E.D.D.) Frae ilk buss, the tangles gay, Hang skinklin' in the mornin' ray.
1888 J. M. Barrie Auld Licht Idylls i The waterspout that suspends its ‘tangles’ of ice over a gaping tank.
2. A tall and limp or flaccid person. Scottish.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > bodily height > tallness > [noun] > and thinness > person
lungis1572
gangrel1582
slangrel1592
maypole1600
slangam1611
mackerel-back1674
spider-catcher1699
gilly-gaupus?1719
tangle1778
beanpole1798
windlestraw1818
lankyc1863
narrowback1921
leptosome1931
string-bean1936
streak1941
1778 A. Ross Helenore (ed. 2) 22 She's but a tangle, tho' shot out she be.
3. Anything long and dangling, as a tress of hair, a long root-fibre, a torn loosely-pendent strip of cloth, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > support > hanging or suspension > [noun] > that which hangs or is suspended > trailingly
trailera1652
trailing1727
streamer1810
trail1844
swab1862
tangle1864
1864 S. Bamford Homely Rhymes 148 Her bonny tangles Were hung wi star-spangles.
1892 M. C. F. Morris Yorks. Folk-talk 386 When t' tang'ls is brokken they [potatoes] can't taatie.
1905 Eng. Dial. Dict. VI. 27/2 [W. Yorks.] Her gown was all rives and tangles.
4. Applied to plants having long, winding, and often tangled stalks, as the species of Myriophyllum (Water Milfoil) and Potamogeton (Pondweed); and to plants of tangled growth as red tangle: see quots.blue tangle, blue tangles: see first element.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants perceived as weeds or harmful plants > poisonous or harmful plants > parasitic plants > [noun] > dodder
doddera1300
hellweedc1510
choke-fitch1562
epithyme1585
podagry1657
devil's guts1670
love bush1814
love vine1833
flax-dodder1852
red tangle1857
fairies' hair1868
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular fruit-tree or -plant > [noun] > tree or plant producing edible berries > other plants producing edible berries
shallon1806
mackaw bush1814
susumber1814
salal1825
quandong1836
tangle1857
turkey-berry1858
quandong1862
manatoka1897
riberry1988
1857 R. Dunglison Med. Lexicon (rev. ed.) 899/2 Tangles, Blue, Gaylussacia dumosa.
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. Blue Tangle, an American name for Gaylussacia frondosa.
1886 J. Britten & R. Holland Dict. Eng. Plant-names Tangle, Red, Cuscuta Epithymum.
Compounds
Categories »
tangle-berry n. = blue-tangle n. at blue adj. and n. Compounds 1b(b), dangle-berry n. at dangle v. Compounds.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1910; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
tangleadj.
/ˈtaŋɡ(ə)l/, U.S. /ˈtæŋɡ(ə)l/, Scottish English /ˈtaŋ(ɡ)(ə)l/ Scottish.
Long and limp; tall and loose-jointed. Also in combination, as tangle-backed.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > bodily height > tallness > [adjective] > and thin
maypolea1635
gangrel1650
gangling1764
tanglec1817
lanky1818
langrel1847
weedy1849
spindled1855
tangly1855
rangy1857
lanikin1862
gangly1871
orming1903
spiderish1935
leptosomic1936
leptosomatic1937
c1817 J. Hogg Tales & Sketches I. 291 She was perfectly weak and tangle, her limbs being scarcely able to bear her weight.
1825 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Suppl. (at cited word) Tangle, tall and feeble, not well-knit..as, ‘a lang tangle lad’.
1896 ‘L. Keith’ Indian Uncle x. 172 Yin o' the tangle-backit kind.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1910; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
tanglev.1
/ˈtaŋɡ(ə)l/ΘΠ
the world > action or operation > difficulty > hindrance > types or manners of hindrance > hinder in specific manner [verb (transitive)] > by entangling or binding
shrenchc897
beswapec980
taglea1340
tanglea1340
gyve1377
encumber138.
engleimc1400
wrapc1412
involvec1440
fetter1526
mesh1532
crawl1548
felter1567
to tie up1570
in trick1572
ensnarl1593
entrammel1598
engage1603
casta1605
imbrier1605
weave1620
immaze1631
trammel1727
enchain1751
entangle1790
enmesh1822
in mesh1875
a1340 R. Rolle Psalter xxxix. 16 (MS. U.) Na man may wit how many vices ere þat men ere tangild with. [So 8 MSS.: tangild, -gyld, -glyd, -glid, -gled, -geled; 2 earliest MSS. tagild.]
a1340 R. Rolle Psalter xxxix. 16 (MS. N.) Na man may wit hou many vices ar þat men ar tagild with. [So MS. S.; MSS. U. & L. tangild; Laud 321 tangyld, Magd. Coll. 52 & Laud 418 tangild, Bodl. 953 tanglyd, Tanner 1 tangled, Univ. Coll. lvi tangeled; Bodl. 467 snaryd.]
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection ii. sig. Rii With the whiche he wyll tangle their myndes and trouble their consciences.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) 1 Tim. vi. 10 Coveteousnes.., which whill some lusted after, they..tanglyd them selves with many sorowes.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 752/2 I am tangled in busynesse, and can nat tel howe to wynde me out.
1561 T. Norton & T. Sackville Gorboduc iv. ii O happie wight, that suffres not the snare Of murderous minde to tangle him in bloode.
1577 R. Holinshed Chron. II. 1767/1 The Queene tangling hir selfe contrarye to promise in hir husbands quarrell.
1671 J. Milton Samson Agonistes 1665 Not willingly, but tangl'd in the fold, Of dire necessity. View more context for this quotation
2. To involve in material things that surround or wind about, so as to hamper and obstruct; also, to cover or wreathe with intertwined growth or with something that obstructs. Also figurative.
ΘΠ
the world > movement > absence of movement > render immobile [verb (transitive)] > render motionless > by hampering or entangling
cumber1487
tangle1511
poister1523
entangle1533
clog1583
tie1598
flag1622
stick1635
impester1653
felter1768
hamper1804
mire1889
the world > space > relative position > intertwining or interweaving > intertwine or interweave [verb (transitive)] > entangle
tangle1829
1511 Pylgrymage Richarde Guylforde (Pynson) f. xliiij We were soo tangled in, amonges the sayde deserte yles that we coude not gette oute frome amonges them.
?1606 M. Drayton Eglog vi, in Poemes sig. F2 See where yon little..lamb of myne, It selfe hath tangled in a crawling brear.
1727 D. Defoe Ess. Hist. Apparitions iv. 43 But hang..upon the meer Thread, and chuse to hamper and tangle themselves.
1829 W. F. Napier Hist. War Peninsula II. 265 He could not, alone, force his way to Lisbon,..through a country tangled with rivers.
1853 G. Johnston Terra Lindisfarnensis I. 144 The sloes and brush~wood that tangle the brae.
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. xx. 250 His journal-entry referring to the 23d, while tangled in the ice.
1867 M. E. Herbert Cradle Lands x. 280 Beautiful gardens..tangled over with ipomeas and other bright creepers.
1885 R. Buchanan Annan Water v The hedges were tangled with wild rose bushes.
3. To catch and hold fast in or as in a net or snare; to entrap. Chiefly, in early use always, figurative.
ΘΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > snare, trap, entanglement > entrap, ensnare [verb (transitive)]
shrenchc897
beswike971
betrapa1000
bewindOE
undernimc1175
undertakec1175
bisayc1200
beguile?c1225
catchc1225
beginc1250
biwilea1275
tele?a1300
enginec1300
lime13..
umwrithea1340
engrin1340
oblige1340
belimec1350
enlacec1374
girnc1375
encumber138.
gnarec1380
enwrap1382
briguea1387
snarl1387
upbroid1387
trap1390
entrikea1393
englue1393
gildera1400
aguilec1400
betraisec1400
embrygec1400
snare1401
lacea1425
maska1425
begluec1430
marl1440
supprise?c1450
to prey ona1500
attrap1524
circumvene1526
entangle1526
tangle1526
entrap1531
mesh1532
embrake1542
crawl1548
illaqueate1548
intricate1548
inveigle1551
circumvent1553
felter1567
besnare1571
in trick1572
ensnare1576
overcatch1577
underfong1579
salt1580
entoil1581
comprehend1584
windlassa1586
folda1592
solicit1592
toil1592
bait1600
beset1600
engage1603
benet1604
imbrier1605
ambush1611
inknot1611
enmesha1616
trammela1616
fool1620
pinion1621
aucupate1630
fang1637
surprise1642
underreacha1652
trepan1656
ensnarl1658
stalk1659
irretiate1660
coil1748
nail1766
net1803
to rope in1840
mousetrap1870
spider1891
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Matt. xxii. f. xxxj The farises..toke counsell, howe they myght tangle him in his wordes.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) 1 Cor. vii. 35 This speake I..not to tangle you in a snare: but for that which is honest and comly vnto you.
1541 T. Elyot Image of Gouernance vi. f. 12v They worke their nette soo fynely,..that in one meishe or other he shall be tangled.
1593 W. Shakespeare Venus & Adonis sig. Bijv Looke how a bird lyes tangled in a net. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 2 (1623) ii. iv. 56 [They] Haue all lym'd Bushes to betray thy Wings, And flye thou how thou canst, they'le tangle [1594 intangle] thee. View more context for this quotation
1639 W. Barriffe Mil. Discipline (ed. 2) i. 5 They doe but tangle themselves in their owne snares.
1806 J. Grahame Birds Scotl. 43 May never fowler's snare Tangle thy struggling foot.
4. To intertwist (threads, branches, or the like) complicatedly or confusedly together; to intertwist the threads or parts of (a thing) in this way; to put or get (a long thread or a number of threads, etc.) into a tangle. Also figurative.
ΘΠ
the world > relative properties > order > disorder > confusion or disorder > entanglement or entangled state > entangle or make tangled [verb (transitive)]
windc1315
harlc1400
snarlc1440
tangle1530
ravela1540
crawl1548
entangle1555
intertangle1589
enroot1600
impester1601
fasel1636
perplex1642
fankle1724
warple1768
hankle1781
intertwist1797
taffle1840
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 752/2 I tangell thynges so togyther that they can nat well be parted a sonder... You have tangled this threde so that it is marred.
1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry ii. f. 54 They come vp as it were to one roote, and tangled togeather.
1665 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 1 35 Those insects..tangled together by their long tailes.
1672 N. Grew Anat. Veg. iii. App. 103 As we are wont to tangle the Twigs of Trees together to make an Arbour Artificial.
1850 H. T. Cheever Whale & his Captors ix. 138 As the different coils run from the tub, they sometimes, when not well laid down, get ‘foul’ or tangled.
1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. xxii. 798 He had cut the knot which the Congress had only twisted and tangled.
5. † b. figurative. To become involved in contention. Obsolete.
a. intransitive for reflexive. To be or become tangled or confusedly intertwined. In quot. 1908, to have a tangled course, to twist about confusedly.
ΘΠ
the world > relative properties > order > disorder > confusion or disorder > entanglement or entangled state > become tangled [verb (intransitive)]
rivelOE
tangle1575
ravela1585
snarl1600
harl1609
twine1658
reeve1821
foul1835
taffle1840
1575 G. Turberville Bk. Faulconrie 174 The Falcon bating this way and that way, she shall neuer twinde nor tangle, bicause the ring followeth hir still.
1623 J. Webster Dutchesse of Malfy iii. ii. sig. F4 My haire tangles.
1657 W. Coles Adam in Eden cci It [dodder] tangleth about it like a net.
1714 J. Petiver in Philos. Trans. 1713 (Royal Soc.) 28 204 The whole Plant is clammy, and its branches tangle much.
1902 Westm. Gaz. 3 Sept. 3/1 Above them [graves] tall grass grows and tangles, as if it were holding them together.
1908 Sat. Rev. 26 Sept. 392/1 She wandered..Down lanes that tangled through the countryside.
ΘΠ
society > society and the community > dissent > contention or strife > carry on (a contest, fight, etc.) [verb (transitive)] > engage in contention with
tangle1535
to make with ——1548
bucklea1605
to take on1866
to take tea with1888
to have on1939
1535 in State Papers Henry VIII (1834) II. 249 Perceyving that thErle of Ossorie soo stedfastely and ernestly tanglid against the same traictors.
1536 in State Papers Henry VIII (1834) II. 330 OConor his he that now moste begynneth newly to tangle ageinst the army.
c. transferred. To fight, to engage in conflict or argument (with or up with); also figurative and loosely, to associate or become involved with. colloquial (originally U.S.).
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > social relations > have social communication with [verb (transitive)]
intercommunec1374
dealc1380
usec1384
intercommonc1430
resort?1518
minglea1593
use1594
intercoursea1604
sociate1635
to keep termsa1673
shoulder1851
tangle1928
society > society and the community > dissent > contention or strife > contend [verb (intransitive)]
winc888
fightc900
flitec900
wraxlec1000
wrestlea1200
cockc1225
conteckc1290
strivec1290
struta1300
topc1305
to have, hold, make, take strifec1374
stightlea1375
debatec1386
batea1400
strugglec1412
hurlc1440
ruffle1440
warc1460
warslea1500
pingle?a1513
contend1529
repugn1529
scruggle1530
sturtc1535
tuga1550
broilc1567
threap1572
yoke1581
bustle1585
bandy1594
tilt1595
combat1597
to go (also shake, try, wrestle) a fall1597
mutiny1597
militate1598
combatizec1600
scuffle1601
to run (or ride) a-tilt1608
wage1608
contesta1618
stickle1625
conflict1628
stickle1647
dispute1656
fence1665
contrast1672
scramble1696
to battle it1715
rug1832
grabble1835
buffet1839
tussle1862
pickeer1892
passage1895
tangle1928
1928 Amer. Speech 3 29 Fistic action in large and copious quantities is expected..tonight when Dave Shade tangles with Maxie Rosenbloom.
1929 D. Hammett Red Harvest xxiv. 242 While we're tangling, them bums will eat us up.
1929 D. Runyon in Cosmopolitan July 58/2 I remember reading in the paper about a lot of different guys who are considered very sensible until they get tangled up with a doll.
1942 Sun (Baltimore) 13 May 15/4 (heading) Preakness victor will tangle with old rivals if he runs at Belmont.
1945 L. R. Gribble Battle Stories of R.A.F. xxv. 64 There's no better fun in the world than tangling with the Hun.
1953 E. S. Gardner Case of Green-eyed Sister (1959) ii. 17 You tangle up with Brogan..and you'll learn something about the noble art of shake-down.
1957 R. Lawler Summer of 17th Doll i. i. 17 I dunno why I always have to get tangled up with little men, just the same. Even Wallie, he was shorter than me.
1958 B. Behan Borstal Boy iii. 185 I don't like tangling with anyone, but Ickey Summers was the sort of little bastard that would pick a fight with you until he lost and the best thing to do with him was to make sure that he lost the first time.
1960 M. Stewart My Brother Michael ix. 118 I didn't particularly want to tangle with Danielle.
1966 P. O'Donnell Sabre-tooth xviii. 244 I fancy we'll tangle in the long run, Willie. But not for a while.
1978 J. B. Hilton Some run Crooked xi. 116 There were men here who had nothing particular to hide, but who had learned..that it was better not to tangle with Kenworthy.
1982 Times 10 Dec. 11/5 The mood of the House was sombre, and he had no desire to tangle with the Secretary of State.
Compounds
The verb-stem with an object, as tangle-leg n. (also tangle-legs) that which tangles the legs: a popular name of an American shrub, the Hobble-bush, Viburnum lantanoides; also for strong beer or spirits; cf. tanglefoot n. tangle-toad n. a name for the creeping buttercup, Ranunculus repens ( Eng. Dial. Dict.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > shrubs > viburnums or guelder rose and allies > [noun] > American wayfaring-tree
moose bush1784
wayfaring tree1785
sheep-berry1814
witchhopple1826
hobble-bush1842
hopple1853
wayfarer's tree1853
devil's shoestring1860
tangle-leg1860
the world > food and drink > drink > intoxicating liquor > ale or beer > beer > [noun] > strong beer
strong beereOE
bub1672
stout1677
tangle-leg1860
exportc1898
1860 J. R. Bartlett Dict. Americanisms (ed. 3) at Hobble Bush A straggling shrub, also called Tangle-Legs and Wayfaring.
1880 R. Jefferies Round about Great Estate iv. 68 Some more ‘tangle-legs’—for thus they called the strong beer.
1882 G. A. Sala Amer. Revisited (1885) 285 The particular kind of whiskey known as ‘tangle-leg’.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1910; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
† tanglev.2
Obsolete.
intransitive. To give out a quick succession of ringing sounds. Cf. twangle n., tinkle n. and int.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > resonance or sonority > ringing sound > ring [verb (intransitive)] > tinkle
twinkle13..
chimea1340
tingc1400
dindlec1440
tinklea1500
tink1528
tingle1582
tanglea1652
trinkle1827
tankle1894
a1652 R. Brome Queenes Exchange (1657) ii. ii The great Bells of our Town, they tingle they tangle, They jingle they jangle, the Tenner of them goes merrily.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1910; most recently modified version published online March 2021).
<
n.1c1540
n.21615n.3a1646
adj.c1817v.1a1340
v.2a1652- supposure
- suppowell
- suppoweller
- suppowelling
- suppowelment
- suppress
- suppressable
- suppressal
- suppressant
- suppressants
- suppressed
- suppressed carrier
- suppressedly
- suppresser
- suppressers
- suppresses
- suppressibilities
- suppressibility
- suppressible
- suppressing
- suppressio veri
- suppression
- suppression order
- suppressionist
- suppressions