tan·gle 1
(tăng′gəl)v. tan·gled, tan·gling, tan·gles
v.tr.1. To mix together or intertwine in a confused mass; snarl: The fishing lines from the two boats were tangled.
2. To catch or ensnare in an intertwined or confused mass: A turtle was tangled in the fishing net.
3. To involve in a complicated situation or in circumstances from which it is difficult to disengage: He got tangled up in a scheme to commit fraud.
v.intr.1. To be or become entangled.
2. Informal To enter into argument, dispute, or conflict: tangled with the law.
n.1. A confused, intertwined mass: a tangle of blood vessels.
2. A jumbled or confused state or condition: a tangle of conflicting reports.
3. Informal An argument or altercation.
[Middle English tangilen, to involve in an embarrassing situation, variant of tagilen, probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Swedish dialectal taggla, to entangle.]
tan′gly adj.
tan·gle 2
(tăng′gəl)n. Any of several large edible seaweeds, especially a kelp.
[Of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse thöngull, seaweed.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
tangling
(ˈtæŋɡəlɪŋ) nthe act or condition of becoming tangled
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014