noose
Americannoun
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a loop with a running knot, as in a snare, lasso, or hangman's halter, that tightens as the rope is pulled.
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a tie or bond; snare.
verb (used with object)
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to secure by or as by a noose.
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to make a noose with or in (a rope or the like).
noun
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a loop in the end of a rope or cord, such as a lasso, snare, or hangman's halter, usually tied with a slipknot
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something that restrains, binds, or traps
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to bring about one's own downfall
verb
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to secure or catch in or as if in a noose
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to make a noose of or in
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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noosesimple
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noosessimple
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have noosedperfect
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has noosedperfect
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am noosingprogressive
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are noosingprogressive
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is noosingprogressive
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have been noosingperfect progressive
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has been noosingperfect progressive
Past
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noosedsimple
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had noosedperfect
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was noosingprogressive
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were noosingprogressive
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had been noosingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of noose
1400–50; late Middle English nose < ?
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Iraqi civilians initially tried to pull it down, scaling the statue to secure a noose around its neck, but were unable to dismantle it.
From BBC ● Mar. 12, 2026
By handing Banks a length of rope instead, and standing by as she prettily ties it into a noose, they invite the audience to conclude that the many sins of “Top Model” weren’t merely systemic.
From Salon ● Feb. 20, 2026
If rates keep climbing, the fiscal noose might tighten.
From Barron's ● Jan. 8, 2026
Despite waves of Carthaginian resistance and the increasing hostility of Roman elites, who resented his precocious record and thirst for glory, Scipio tightened the noose around Carthage.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 16, 2025
Quickly she took the thongs from her boots, made a noose, and placed it under the sedge.
From "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George
Lunday said the reports of labeling swastikas and nooses as divisive were “categorically false.”
From Salon ● Nov. 21, 2025
In it, singer Yawar Abdal imagines a Kashmir where people, blindfolded and with nooses around their necks, are liberated amid chants of “All shall be free.”
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 4, 2022
Critics allege the industry has serious safety problems, with dangers posed by nooses, hair dryers and poor handling by groomers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2021
The law, filed as HB0418, would institute a statewide order disallowing any symbols of hate including, but not limited to: swastikas, Confederate flags and nooses - though they can be displayed in classroom settings.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 30, 2021
“Throw far thy nets, thy nooses, and thy snares, “And all thy treacherous skill; nor with lim'd twig “Deceive the bird; nor with strong toils the deer; “Nor hide the barbed hook with treacherous bait.
From The Metamorphoses of Publius Ovidus Naso in English blank verse Vols. I & II by Howard, J. J.
You would see them trundle up and down Spinner's Walk trailing wires and lights, their gaze rolling towards the hospital gates on Clarence Road, their necks noosed by camera straps.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 19, 2014
You would see them trundle up and down Spinner’s Walk trailing wires and lights, their gaze rolling toward the hospital gates on Clarence Road, their necks noosed by camera straps.
From New York Times ● Sep. 19, 2014
The astonished fishermen noosed the two animals, hauled them aboard, took them ashore.
From Time Magazine Archive
I willed them to move, but my conscience noosed around my ankles and pulled down hard.
From "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys
One end of it was fast to a staple firmly imbedded in the wood of the saddle-tree, while the other, as we have seen, was noosed around the bear.
From Bruin The Grand Bear Hunt by Zwecker, Johann Baptist
Mitchum is snagging coconuts and noosing turtles; Deborah is roasting breadfruit and thatching a sail.
From Time Magazine Archive
Before the trail was quite completed, it yielded one of the most exciting hunts of our trip—the noosing of a giant bushmaster—the most deadly serpent of the tropics.
From Jungle Peace by Beebe, William
These consisted of long thongs of reindeer-skin, and also hempen cords of the manufacture of civilized men, for noosing the reins, and of bowls, kits, &c., to receive the milk.
From Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. 3, July, 1851 by Various
Young Marc-Antonio Grilli, the cleverest lad in the parish at noosing any wild animal, is our patron of the feast.
From Imaginary Conversations and Poems A Selection by Landor, Walter Savage
He said, and noosing a strong galley-rope To an huge column, led the cord around The spacious dome, suspended so aloft 540 That none with quiv’ring feet might reach the floor.
From The Odyssey of Homer by Cowper, William
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
