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entangle

[en-tang-guh l]
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verb (used with object), en·tan·gled, en·tan·gling.
  1. to make tangled; ensnarl; intertwine.
  2. to involve in or as in a tangle; ensnare; enmesh: to be entangled by intrigue.
  3. to involve in difficulties.
  4. to confuse or perplex.
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Origin of entangle

First recorded in 1530–40; en-1 + tangle1
Related formsen·tan·gle·a·ble, adjectiveen·tan·gled·ly, adverben·tan·gled·ness, nounen·tan·gler, nounen·tan·gling·ly, adverbin·ter·en·tan·gle, verb (used with object), in·ter·en·tan·gled, in·ter·en·tan·gling.un·en·tan·gle·a·ble, adjectiveun·en·tan·gled, adjectiveun·en·tan·gling, adjective

Synonyms

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3. See involve. 4. bewilder.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

implicate, unsettle, perplex, interweave, embroil, ensnare, confuse, complicate, snarl, intertwine, enmesh, embarrass, snare, tangle, entrap, clog, fetter, knot, puzzle, twist

Examples from the Web for entangle

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Bunyan rather looked on him as a false friend trying to entangle him.

    Bunyan

    James Anthony Froude

  • Yes; he contrived to entangle himself in some Jacobite plot.

  • I was determined to entangle Nepcote, and to free Hazel Rath.

    The Hand in the Dark

    Arthur J. Rees

  • At present she has a mission too, which is to entangle me into a compromising position.

    Jack O' Judgment

    Edgar Wallace

  • She've no wiles to entangle you with; an' I 'low that she'd despise the use o' them anyhow.

British Dictionary definitions for entangle

entangle

verb (tr)
  1. to catch or involve in or as if in a tangle; ensnare or enmesh
  2. to make tangled or twisted; snarl
  3. to make complicated; confuse
  4. to involve in difficulties; entrap
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Derived Formsentangler, noun
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

Word Origin and History for entangle

v.

early 15c., from en- (1) + tangle (n.). Related: Entangled; entangling.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper