tangle

C1 Topic:Actions & Processes

US /ˈtæŋ.ɡl̩/ See IPA manual

Freq #21292

Meanings

1

verb
To twist together into a messy, knotted mass.

The wind tangled her long hair within minutes.
2

noun
A twisted, knotted mass of something.

They hacked their way through a tangle of vines.
3

noun
A confused or complicated situation.

The new rules created a tangle of paperwork for small businesses.
4

verb
To become involved in an argument or fight.

You don't want to tangle with someone that aggressive.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Multiword verbs with tangle

tangle with Prepositional verb C1

to become involved in a difficult conflict or encounter with someone

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to twist together into a... disheveltouslemat

3 noun · a confused or complicated... maze snarl

4 verb · to become involved in an... argue conflict dispute fight

More enmesh ensnare ensnarl entangle foul implicate imply involve ravel

Opposites

untangle

Word family

Forms tanglestangling

Derived forms betangleentangletangle-wracktanglefishtanglelegstanglesome

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

tangle with
to become involved in a difficult conflict or encounter with someone

Verb + preposition/particle

Simplified etymology

Tangle is probably derived from Swedish taggla, “to disarrange.”

Etymology

Of North Germanic origin, such as Danish tang or Swedish tång, from Old Norse þongull, þang. See also Norwegian tongul, Faroese tongul, Icelandic þöngull.

tang da tång sv þang Old Norse

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# tangle

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** verb, noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈtæŋ.ɡl̩/
**Frequency rank:** 21292

## Meanings
1. To twist together into a messy, knotted mass.
2. A twisted, knotted mass of something.
3. A confused or complicated situation.
4. To become involved in an argument or fight.

## Examples
- The wind tangled her long hair within minutes.
- They hacked their way through a tangle of vines.
- The new rules created a tangle of paperwork for small businesses.
- You don't want to tangle with someone that aggressive.

## Synonyms
- enmesh
- ensnare
- ensnarl
- entangle
- foul
- implicate
- imply
- involve
- mat
- ravel
- snarl

## Antonyms
- untangle

## Derived Forms
- betangle
- entangle
- tangle-wrack
- tanglefish
- tanglelegs
- tanglesome

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: tang
- Root: tång
- Root: þang

## Etymology
Of North Germanic origin, such as Danish tang or Swedish tång, from Old Norse þongull, þang. See also Norwegian tongul, Faroese tongul, Icelandic þöngull.

## AI Etymology
Tangle is of North Germanic origin, such as Danish tang or Swedish tång, from Old Norse þongull, þang. See also Norwegian tongul, Faroese tongul, Icelandic þöngull. In present-day use, it can mean to twist together into a messy, knotted mass, or a twisted, knotted mass of something. Derived formations include betangle, entangle, tangle-wrack, tanglefish, tanglelegs.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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