dangled; dangling
ˈdaŋ-g(ə-)liŋ 
1
: to hang loosely and usually so as to be able to swing freely
2
: to be a hanger-on or a dependent
3
: to occur in a sentence without having a normally expected syntactic relation to the rest of the sentence (such as climbing in "Climbing the mountain the cabin came into view")
a dangling participle
a dangling modifier
1
: to cause to dangle : swing
dangled her feet in the water
2
a
: to keep hanging uncertainly
b
: to hold out as an inducement
Synonyms
Examples of dangle in a Sentence
Verb
Let your arms dangle at your sides.
She sat on the edge of the pool, dangling her feet in the water.
He dangled a piece of string in front of the cat.
The money she dangled in front of him wasn't enough to convince him to sell.
They refused to accept the money that was dangled before their eyes.
Recent Examples on the Web
Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, 15 Apr. 2024
McKinnon is wearing her character Colleen’s trademark jeans, a disheveled brown wig, and a dangling cigarette.
—Anne McCarthy, Variety, 14 Apr. 2024
That leads into the clubby and more private Green Room, with its rich green-lacquered walls and dangling blossom lighting fixtures.
—Linda Zavoral, The Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2024
The Daisy Jones & The Six star accessorized with dangling earrings and a sparkly headband.
—Catherine Santino, Peoplemag, 12 Apr. 2024
Salvador Dali believed naps should be self-limiting and advised taking them while seated in a chair, lightly holding a heavy key in one dangling hand.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Apr. 2024
Based on the unique wide-set positioning of the feet and a dangling strip of carved cloth, Warrack traced one of the missing figures — the divine fighter Bhima — to the Norton Simon, which had purchased it from a New York art dealer in 1976.
—Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2024
Finally remember to remove the baby mobile once a baby can push up to their hands and knees to touch the dangling objects (at around 5 months of age).
—Bridget Shirvell, Parents, 26 Mar. 2024
Then Cobb points out a long, frilly yellow ribbon of something, dangling off a rock: nudibranch eggs.
—Helen Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Apr. 2024
Aarian Marshall, WIRED, 12 Mar. 2024
The weakened twigs can be broken by the wind and fall to the ground or dangle from the tree.
—USA TODAY, 7 Mar. 2024
Feathers dangle from the ceiling, and traditional medicines and herbs in small leather pouches are close by.
—David Kelly, Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2024
In the center of the dining area, a clown sculpture dangles from a cluster of colorful faux balloons attached to the ceiling.
—Jacqueline Pinedo, Sacramento Bee, 29 Feb. 2024
Williams was free of jewelry except for one pair of dangle diamond earrings.
—Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 13 Feb. 2024
Use these to dangle crystal beads or hang candles like the Raindrop hanging candle holders ($5, shopwildthings.com/hacaho).
—Charlotte Observer, 1 Feb. 2024
Despite a massive daily cleanup operation that leaves the post-parade landscape remarkably clean, uncaught beads dangle from tree limbs like Spanish moss and get ground into the mud under the feet of passers-by.
—Kevin McGill, Quartz, 11 Feb. 2024
Gomez posted two Instagram Stories of herself in a gold asymmetrical dress and dangle earrings alongside her friend.
—Alyssa Bailey, ELLE, 21 July 2023
Verb
The Chesapeake 1000 floated the dangling wreckage to Sparrows Point, an industrial stretch of Baltimore’s waterfront, which was home to a shuttered Bethlehem Steel plant that provided steel for the span in the 1970s.
—Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, 15 Apr. 2024
McKinnon is wearing her character Colleen’s trademark jeans, a disheveled brown wig, and a dangling cigarette.
—Anne McCarthy, Variety, 14 Apr. 2024
That leads into the clubby and more private Green Room, with its rich green-lacquered walls and dangling blossom lighting fixtures.
—Linda Zavoral, The Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2024
The Daisy Jones & The Six star accessorized with dangling earrings and a sparkly headband.
—Catherine Santino, Peoplemag, 12 Apr. 2024
Salvador Dali believed naps should be self-limiting and advised taking them while seated in a chair, lightly holding a heavy key in one dangling hand.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Apr. 2024
Based on the unique wide-set positioning of the feet and a dangling strip of carved cloth, Warrack traced one of the missing figures — the divine fighter Bhima — to the Norton Simon, which had purchased it from a New York art dealer in 1976.
—Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2024
Finally remember to remove the baby mobile once a baby can push up to their hands and knees to touch the dangling objects (at around 5 months of age).
—Bridget Shirvell, Parents, 26 Mar. 2024
Then Cobb points out a long, frilly yellow ribbon of something, dangling off a rock: nudibranch eggs.
—Helen Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Apr. 2024
Noun
But a small strap dangles from the inside lid of the compartment.
—Aarian Marshall, WIRED, 12 Mar. 2024
The weakened twigs can be broken by the wind and fall to the ground or dangle from the tree.
—USA TODAY, 7 Mar. 2024
Feathers dangle from the ceiling, and traditional medicines and herbs in small leather pouches are close by.
—David Kelly, Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2024
In the center of the dining area, a clown sculpture dangles from a cluster of colorful faux balloons attached to the ceiling.
—Jacqueline Pinedo, Sacramento Bee, 29 Feb. 2024
Williams was free of jewelry except for one pair of dangle diamond earrings.
—Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 13 Feb. 2024
Use these to dangle crystal beads or hang candles like the Raindrop hanging candle holders ($5, shopwildthings.com/hacaho).
—Charlotte Observer, 1 Feb. 2024
Despite a massive daily cleanup operation that leaves the post-parade landscape remarkably clean, uncaught beads dangle from tree limbs like Spanish moss and get ground into the mud under the feet of passers-by.
—Kevin McGill, Quartz, 11 Feb. 2024
Gomez posted two Instagram Stories of herself in a gold asymmetrical dress and dangle earrings alongside her friend.
—Alyssa Bailey, ELLE, 21 July 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dangle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Dangle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dangle. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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