trammel

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English tramayle, from Middle French tramail, variant of tremail “three-mesh net,” from Late Latin trēmaculum, equivalent to Latin trē(s) “three” + macula “mesh”; see also three

OTHER WORDS FROM trammel

tram·mel·er; especially British, tram·mel·ler, nounun·tram·meled; especially British, un·tram·melled, adjective

Words nearby trammel

tram, trama, tramadol, TRAM flap, tramline, trammel, trammel net, trammie, tramontana, tramontane, tramp

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use trammel in a sentence

The most correct method of drawing an ellipse is by means of an instrument termed a trammel, which is shown in Figure 83.
Mechanical Drawing Self-Taught|Joshua Rose
Trammel, tram′el, n. a net used in fowling and fishing: shackles for making a horse amble: anything that confines.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements)|Various
There was no cult of seamanship, no dead wall of prejudice to trammel modern naval developments.
The Empire of the East|H. B. Montgomery
The coronation oath, they said, was never intended to trammel him in his legislative capacity.
The History of England from the Accession of James II.|Thomas Babington Macaulay

That which is progress to-day, may it not one hundred years hence have become mere routine, and a downright trammel?
Monsieur de Camors, Complete|Octave Feuillet

British Dictionary definitions for trammel

trammel

/ (ˈtræməl) /

noun

(often plural) a hindrance to free action or movement

Also called: trammel net a fishing net in three sections, the two outer nets having a large mesh and the middle one a fine mesh

rare a fowling net

US a fetter or shackle, esp one used in teaching a horse to amble

a device for drawing ellipses consisting of a flat sheet of metal, plastic, or wood having a cruciform slot in which run two pegs attached to a beam. The free end of the beam describes an ellipse

(sometimes plural) another name for beam compass

Also called: tram a gauge for setting up machines correctly

a device set in a fireplace to support cooking pots

verb -els, -elling or -elled or US -els, -eling or -eled (tr)

to hinder or restrain

to catch or ensnare

to produce an accurate setting of (a machine adjustment), as with a trammel

Derived forms of trammel

trammeller or US trammeler, noun

Word Origin for trammel

C14: from Old French tramail three-mesh net, from Late Latin trēmaculum, from Latin trēs three + macula hole, mesh in a net

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

trammel

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How to use trammel in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for trammel

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