dangle

[ dang-guhl ]
See synonyms for: dangledangling on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),dan·gled, dan·gling.
  1. to hang loosely, especially with a jerking or swaying motion: The rope dangled in the breeze.

  2. to hang around or follow a person, as if seeking favor or attention.

  1. Grammar. to occur as a modifier without a head or as a participle without an implied subject, as leaving the tunnel in The daylight was blinding, leaving the tunnel.

verb (used with object),dan·gled, dan·gling.
  1. to cause to dangle; hold or carry swaying loosely.

  2. to offer as an inducement.

noun
  1. the act of dangling.

  2. something that dangles.

Idioms about dangle

  1. keep someone dangling, to keep someone in a state of uncertainty.

Origin of dangle

1
1580–90; expressive word akin to Norwegian, Swedish dangla,Danish dangle dangle

Other words for dangle

Other words from dangle

  • dangler, noun
  • dan·gling·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dangle in a sentence

  • He was not a man to dodge trouble that might bring profit dangling to the fringe of her skirt.

    Scattergood Baines | Clarence Budington Kelland
  • Mariequita sat near by, dangling her legs, watching him work, and handing him nails from the tool-box.

  • Besides, there was the ever unceasing grizzly spectre of poverty dangling before Jessie's eyes.

    The Weight of the Crown | Fred M. White
  • The American was dressed after the fashion prevailing in the hills, and had a couple of revolvers dangling at his hips.

    Motor Matt's "Century" Run | Stanley R. Matthews
  • I remember the feeling I had when my brother once showed me the picture of a man dangling from the branch of a tree.

    Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist | Alexander Berkman

British Dictionary definitions for dangle

dangle

/ (ˈdæŋɡəl) /


verb
  1. to hang or cause to hang freely: his legs dangled over the wall

  2. (tr) to display as an enticement: the hope of a legacy was dangled before her

noun
  1. the act of dangling or something that dangles

Origin of dangle

1
C16: perhaps from Danish dangle, probably of imitative origin

Derived forms of dangle

  • dangler, noun
  • danglingly, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012