dangle

dangle Definition

dan·gle (daŋ′gəl)

intransitive verb -·gled, -·gling

to hang loosely so as to swing back and forth a long tail dangled from the kite
to be a hanger-on; follow (after)
to lack clear syntactic connection to another element in the sentence in which it occurs: said of a modifier [in “After marrying him, her trouble began,” “marrying” is a dangling participle]

Etymology: < Scand, as in Dan dangle, Ice dingla, to dangle

transitive verb

to hold (something) so that it hangs and swings loosely the child dangled the doll by one arm
to offer in a tempting or teasing way as an inducement

dangle Related Forms

dan′·gler noun

dangle Synonyms

dangle Usage Examples

Object

carrot: How to buy Yourself all The Largo you gripe By dangling a carrot.
bell: Polygonatum Solomon's Seal Arching stems with dangling white bells.
leg: Above the heads of the eagles were dangled legs of mutton.
foot: I was hanging off a bridge, dangling 20 feet in the air, tied to a chair, in my boxers!

Preposition: on

rope: However, she did not realize that she would end up dangling on a rope 100 feet high from the Humber Bridge.

Preposition: over

Modifying Another Word

precariously: I looked up to see the engine of a car dangling precariously about seventy feet above me from a shattered gantry.
there: A chunky figure in oilskins stepped into the cascade and flicked at a short rope dangling there.
down: A crew from Canvey attended the incident and a firefighter was dangled upside down over the drain to investigate.

Followed by an intransitive particle

down: Her hair is like strands of vines dangling down from the rain forest.
around: Crumpled and sticky and dirty, with her knickers dangling around her knees.

Followed by a transitive particle

off: Jack found himself laying down on the bed, his legs still dangling off the edge.

Preposition: in

mid-air: Some 15 meters of line was left dangling in mid-air over the six meter deep crater.
front: GD: Dangling in front of Amy [ Teresa's host in England ] is the offer of a new life in Sydney.
wind: Come jam, and we find Chris Morris dangling in the wind, creating moments of unforgettable shock alongside exercises in tawdry tedium.
air: As they did the ship rolled and I was dangling in the air.
water: Little hands dangling in the water, what does that mean?

Preposition: from

ceiling: You try to listen in, but they're gone, just a couple of mutilated corpses are left dangling from the ceiling.
rope: She loves juggling, jumping around and dangling from a rope.
tree: The thieves were so angry that they caught him and left him dangling from a tall oak tree.

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