fangle

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To fashion, manufacture, invent, or create.
  2. To trim showily; entangle; hang about.
  3. To waste time; trifle.
noun
  1. A prop; a taking up; a new thing.
  2. Something newly fashioned; a novelty, a new fancy.
  3. A foolish innovation; a gewgaw; a trifling ornament.
  4. A conceit; whim.

Pronunciation

/ˈfæŋ.ɡəl/ [ˈfæŋ.ɡl̩] /ˈfeɪ̯ŋ.ɡəl/ [ˈfeɪ̯ŋ.ɡl̩] /ˈfɛ̃ŋ.ɡəl/ [ˈfɛ̃ŋ.ɡl̩]

Word forms

fangle fangles fangling fangled

Etymology

From Middle English fangelen (verb), from fangel (“inclined to take”, adjective), from Old English *fangol, *fangel (“inclined to take”), from fōn (“to take, seize”). Compare Old English andfangol (“undertaker, contractor”), Old English underfangelnes (“undertaking, hospitality”), Middle English fangen (“to take, seize, catch”), German fangen (“to catch”). More at fang.

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