Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Tangle
Tan′gle
,Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Tangled
; p. pr. & vb. n.
Tangling
.] 1.
To unite or knit together confusedly; to interweave or interlock, as threads, so as to make it difficult to unravel the knot; to entangle; to ravel.
2.
To involve; to insnare; to entrap;
“Tangled in amorous nets.” as, to be
. tangled
in liesMilton.
When my simple weakness strays,
Tangled
in forbidden ways. Crashaw.
Tan′gle
,Verb.
I.
To be entangled or united confusedly; to get in a tangle.
Tan′gle
,Noun.
1.
[Cf. Icel.
þöngull
. See Tang
seaweed.] (Bot.)
Any large blackish seaweed, especially the
Laminaria saccharina
. See Kelp
. Coral and sea fan and
tangle
, the blooms and the palms of the ocean. C. Kingsley.
2.
[From ]
Tangle
, Verb.
A knot of threads, or other thing, united confusedly, or so interwoven as not to be easily disengaged; a snarl;
as, hair or yarn in
tangles
; a tangle
of vines and briers. Used also figuratively.3.
pl.
An instrument consisting essentially of an iron bar to which are attached swabs, or bundles of frayed rope, or other similar substances, – used to capture starfishes, sea urchins, and other similar creatures living at the bottom of the sea.
Webster 1828 Edition
Tangle
TAN'GLE
, v.t.1.
To implicate; to unite or knit together confusedly; to interweave or interlock, as threads, so as to make it difficult to ravel the knot.2.
To ensnare; to entrap; as, to be tangled in the folds of dire necessity. Tangled in amorous nets.
3.
To embroil; to embarrass. When my simple weakness strays,
Tangled in forbidden ways.
[Entangle, the compound, is the more elegant word.]
TAN'GLE
,Verb.
I.
TAN'GLE
,Noun.
1.
A kind of sea weed.