gnarl

[ nahrl ]

/ nɑrl /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR gnarl ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a knotty protuberance on a tree; knot.

verb (used with object)

to twist into a knotted or distorted form.

Words related to gnarl

screw, tangle, moan, grunt, howl, rumble, growl, cry, snarl, yap, bark, mutter, roar, writhe, deform, skew, cripple, impair, contort, maim

Words nearby gnarl

gmta, gmw, gn, gnamma hole, gnar, gnarl, gnarled, gnarly, gnash, gnash one's teeth, gnashers

Origin of gnarl

First recorded in 1805–15; back formation from gnarled

SYNONYMS FOR gnarl

2 contort, distort.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR gnarl ON THESAURUS.COM

Definition for gnarl (2 of 2)

gnarl²

[ nahrl ]

/ nɑrl /

verb (used without object)

to growl; snarl.

Origin of gnarl

First recorded in 1585–95; variant of gnar

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for gnarl

The ball is a knob or gnarl from the trunk of a tree, carefully formed into a globular shape.
The Traditional Games of England, Scotland, and Ireland (Vol I of II)|Alice Bertha Gomme
In a little while he returned, carrying a gnarl of pine wood, which he set to blazing at the fire.
The Red Tavern|Charles Raymond Macauley

British Dictionary definitions for gnarl (1 of 2)

gnarl¹

/ (nɑːl) /

noun

any knotty protuberance or swelling on a tree

verb

(tr) to knot or cause to knot

Word Origin for gnarl

C19: back formation from gnarled, probably variant of knurled; see knurl

British Dictionary definitions for gnarl (2 of 2)

gnarl²

gnar (nɑː)

/ (nɑːl) /

verb

(intr) obsolete to growl or snarl

Word Origin for gnarl

C16: of imitative origin

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