dangle

[dang-guhl]

verb (used without object)

dangled, dangling 

1. to hang loosely, especially with a jerking or swaying motion.

   The rope dangled in the breeze.

   Synonyms: flap, sway, swing

2. to hang around or follow a person, as if seeking favor or attention.

3. Grammar.,  to occur as a modifier without a head or as a participle without an implied subject, as leaving the tunnel in The daylight was blinding, leaving the tunnel.

verb (used with object)

dangled, dangling 

1. to cause to dangle; hold or carry swaying loosely.

2. to offer as an inducement.

noun

1. the act of dangling.

2. something that dangles.

dangle

/ ˈdæŋɡəl /

verb

1. to hang or cause to hang freely

   his legs dangled over the wall

2. (tr) to display as an enticement

   the hope of a legacy was dangled before her

noun

1. the act of dangling or something that dangles

Other Word Forms

• dangler noun
• danglingly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of dangle¹

1580–90; expressive word akin to Norwegian, Swedish dangla, Danish dangle dangle

Word History and Origins

Origin of dangle¹

C16: perhaps from Danish dangle, probably of imitative origin

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. keep someone dangling, to keep someone in a state of uncertainty.

Example Sentences

Inside Dorothy’s Kansan house, a once-shadowed frying pan on the wall now dangles front and center, as does a digitally added “Home Sweet Home” needlepoint nailed to the threshold.

From Los Angeles Times

Russia has dangled the possibility of building a nuclear power plant in uranium-rich Niger - a vast, arid state on the edge of the Sahara desert that has to import most of its electricity.

From BBC

It limply dangles between his legs as he slides into the sheets next to a very turned-off Satan, who dumped Saddam Hussein only to fall for someone who sounds and acts exactly like him.

From Salon

Notable decor included a statue of a bride hanging onto a rope that dangled in an atrium, a wall of framed prosthetic eyeballs and leopard-print seating.

From Salon

He held out his cleats and dangled them over a creek, shouting to Harbaugh that if he wanted them he’d have to swim for them.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• droop 
• flap 
• hang 
• sling 
• sway 
• swing