wrangle [rang-guhl] SynonymsExamplesWord Origin verb (used without object), wran·gled, wran·gling.
- to argue or dispute, especially in a noisy or angry manner.
verb (used with object), wran·gled, wran·gling.
- to argue or dispute.
- to tend or round up (cattle, horses, or other livestock).
- to obtain, often by contrivance or scheming; wangle: He wrangled a job through a friend.
noun
- a noisy or angry dispute; altercation.
Origin of wrangle 1350–1400; Middle English, apparently Low German wrangeln, frequentative of wrangen to struggle, make an uproar; akin to wring Related formsout·wran·gle, verb (used with object), out·wran·gled, out·wran·gling.un·wran·gling, adjectiveCan be confusedwangle wrangleSynonyms for wrangle 1, 5. quarrel, brawl. 5. argument. Related Words for wrangled squabble, flap, tiff, ruckus, disagreement, hassle, altercation, fracas, brawl, brouhaha, falling-out, quarrel, bickering, bicker, disagree, quibble, tangle, clash, contest, exchange Examples from the Web for wrangled Contemporary Examples of wrangled
She has wrangled half-a-dozen rowboats so that people can fish in the sea nearby.
Eliza Griswold
November 14, 2010
Plagued by low ratings, ABC wrangled with Cho about her weight, not being Asian enough, and then being too Asian.
Joyce C. Tang
August 3, 2010
Dave Chapelle pulled off the impossible and wrangled the Fugees back together for his 2004 Block Party documentary.
11 Rock Reunion Dos and Don’ts
The Daily Beast Video
May 3, 2009
Historical Examples of wrangled
They wrangled on the doorstep until it was late, but she would not yield to him.
St. John G. Ervine
Their home had become a regular shambles where they wrangled the whole day long.
Emile Zola
They wrangled back and forth, covering the same ground time and again.
William Macleod Raine
On the road to Hatton Garden we wrangled nearly all the way.
Various
They were tired, and under the guise of unselfishness they wrangled.
E. M. Forster
British Dictionary definitions for wrangled wrangle verb
- (intr) to argue, esp noisily or angrily
- (tr) to encourage, persuade, or obtain by argument
- (tr) Western US and Canadian to herd (cattle or horses)
noun
- a noisy or angry argument
Word Origin for wrangle C14: from Low German wrangeln; related to Norwegian vrangla Word Origin and History for wrangled wrangle v.
late 14c., from Low German wrangeln “to dispute, to wrestle,” related to Middle Low German wringen, from Proto-Germanic *wrang-, from PIE *wrengh-, nasalized variant of *wergh- “to turn” (see wring). Related: Wrangled; wrangling. The noun is recorded from 1540s.