tangle

UK: /ˈtæŋg^əl/ US: /ˈtæŋgəl/ ,(tang′gəl)

Inflections of 'tangle' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

tangles

v 3rd person singular

tangling

v pres p

tangled

v past

tangled

v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

tan•gle¹ /ˈtæŋgəl/   v., -gled, -gling, n. 
v. 

1. to (cause to) be brought together into a mass of confused parts or strands;
   entangle: [~ + object]
   The wind tangled the girl's long hair.
   [no object]
   Those puppet strings tangle too easily.
2. to involve in something that prevents freedom of movement:
   [~ + object] The bushes were tangled with vines.
3. to catch and hold in or as if in a net or snare:
   [~ + object] tangled in a web of lies.
4. Informal Terms to come into conflict;
   fight or argue:
   [no object] I don't want to be around when those two tangle.

n. [countable]

5. a tangled situation;
   a tangled mass:
   The deer was caught in a tangle of vines.
6. a confused mess;
   maze:
   a tangle of lies and contradictions.
7. Informal Terms a conflict;
   disagreement:
   I got into a tangle with the manager.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

tan•gle¹  (tang′gəl), v., -gled, -gling, n. 
v.t. 

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.

v.i. 

4. to be or become tangled.
5. Informal Terms to come into conflict;
   fight or argue:
   I don't want to tangle with him over the new ruling.

n. 

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 Terms a conflict;
   disagreement:
   He got into a tangle with the governor.

• Scandinavian; compare Swedish (dialect, dialectal) taggla to disarrange
• Middle English tangilen, tagilen to entangle 1300–50

tan′gle•ment, n. 
tan′gler, n. 
tan′gly, adv. 
Synonyms

• 8. snarl, net, labyrinth, maze.

tan•gle²  (tang′gəl), n. 

1. Plant Biology, Microbiology any of several large seaweeds of the genus Laminaria.

• Scandinavian; compare Old Norse thǫngull strand of tangle, Norwegian tang
• 1530–40

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

tangle / ˈtæŋɡ^əl/ noun

1. a confused or complicated mass of hairs, lines, fibres, etc, knotted or coiled together
2. a complicated problem, condition, or situation

verb

1. to become or cause to become twisted together in a confused mass
2. (intransitive) often followed by with: to come into conflict; contend
3. (transitive) to involve in matters which hinder or confuse
4. (transitive) to ensnare or trap, as in a net

Etymology: 14th Century tangilen, variant of tagilen, probably of Scandinavian origin; related to Swedish dialect taggla to entangle

ˈtangly adjective