dangle
/ˈdaŋɡ(ə)l
/verb [no object, with adverbial of place]
1Hang or swing loosely: saucepans dangled from a rail [with object]: they were dangling their legs over the water...
- Idande was sitting not far from me on the chimney, raised above my head, his legs dangling and swinging gently like a child might sit.
- From the long tapering fingers of her right hand a golden chain dangled and swinging idly from its end hung a small iridescent vial.
- Yesterday, while finishing off my accounts, I looked up to find a pair of legs dangling outside the window.
Synonyms
hang (down), droop, sag, swing, sway, wave, trail, stream
archaic depend
hanging, drooping, droopy, suspended, supported from above, pendulous, pendent, swinging, swaying, trailing, flowing, falling, tumbling
rare pensile
1.1 [with object] Offer (an enticing incentive) to someone: the defence portfolio could be the carrot to dangle before him...
- The offer of further employment is dangled before them like a carrot, if their work is good enough.
- That is why the tax relief is dangled as an incentive.
- I get entertained by a talent who dangles outsider clichés without any idea what to say.
Synonyms
offer, hold out;
entice someone with, lure someone with, tempt someone with, tantalize someone with, seduce someone with
Phrases
keep someone dangling
Derivatives
dangler
/ noun ...- Curtains to danglers… Valerie Clegg reckons her special curtain hook invention will mean a neater look that will appeal to the houseproud.
- She loves earrings and has a varied collection of long danglers made of stones and wires.
- After a while I realised that the neck dangler was the remote to open the door!
dangly
- From this Asian gift shop I also bought some trashy earrings - some with dangly fake diamonds and emeralds.
- Mrs Clegg explained: ‘You can change the width of the curtains and it also wraps around so you can hide all the dangly bits.’
- Cab drivers seem to have a pathological need to fill their cabs with dangly air fresheners.
Origin
Late 16th century: symbolic of something loose and pendulous, corresponding to Danish dangle, Swedish dangla, but the origin is unclear.