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tr.v. man·gled, man·gling, man·gles 1. To mutilate or disfigure by battering, hacking, cutting, or tearing: fishing nets that mangle fish. 2. To ruin or spoil through ineptitude or ignorance: mangle a speech. [Middle English manglen, from Anglo-Norman mangler, frequentative of Old French mangoner, to cut to bits; possibly akin to mahaignier, to maim; see MAYHEM.] mangler n. Synonyms: mangle, maim1, maul, mutilate These verbs mean to cause severe injury or damage: machinery that mangled the worker's fingers; a construction worker maimed in an accident; a hiker mauled by a hungry bear; soldiers mutilated by shrapnel. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
n. 1. A machine for pressing fabrics by means of heated rollers. 2. Chiefly British A clothes wringer. tr.v. man·gled, man·gling, man·gles To press with a mangle. [Dutch mangel, from German, from Middle High German, diminutive of mange, mangonel, from Late Latin manganum, catapult; see MANGONEL.]  (click for a larger image) mangle2 |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
