mangle

1 of 3

verb (1)

man·​gle ˈmaŋ-gəl 

mangled; mangling ˈmaŋ-g(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to injure with deep disfiguring wounds by cutting, tearing, or crushing

… people … mangled by sharks.

—V. G. Heiser

2

: to spoil, injure, or make incoherent especially through ineptitude

a story mangled beyond recognition

mangle

2 of 3

noun

: a machine for ironing laundry by passing it between heated rollers

mangle

3 of 3

verb (2)

mangled; mangling ˈmaŋ-g(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

: to press or smooth (something, such as damp linen) with a mangle

Did you know?

If you’re a fan of traditional laundry appliances, you know the machine sort of mangle, which presses fabric between two heated rollers to make it smooth. You likely also know that when you use such a machine it's called mangling. This pair of mangles came to English in the late 17th century from the Dutch word mangel. Most of us, however, only know that when we mangle something we ruin it, either through carelessness or ineptitude. This mangle is much older—we adopted the word from Anglo-French in the 15th century—and in modern use it has mostly strayed pleasantly from its original use having to do with injuring with deep disfiguring wounds. Its path in English has followed a trajectory similar to that of butcher, moving swiftly from applying solely to a violent action to also taking on a figurative use meaning “to bungle.”

Synonyms of mangle

Verb (1)

• fumble
• blow
• dub
• ruin
• botch
• butcher
• bungle
• boot
• destroy
• spoil

Choose the Right Synonym for mangle

maim, mutilate, mangle mean to injure so severely as to cause lasting damage.

maim implies the loss or injury of a body part.

maimed by a shark

mutilate implies the cutting off or removal of an essential part of a person or thing thereby impairing its completeness, beauty, or function.

a tree mutilated by inept pruning

mangle implies a tearing or crushing that leaves deep wounds.

a soldier's leg mangled by shrapnel

Examples of mangle in a Sentence

Verb (1)

you've mangled this so badly that we'll have to do it over

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Complex documents with tables, charts and mixed content need each content type scored separately, since a model can nail text while mangling a table. — Sriram Bhargav Madhav, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026

Old tree roots have mangled sidewalks and created obstacles for pedestrians, especially parents with strollers and people using wheelchairs. — Alexa Herrera, CBS News, 13 July 2026

Noun

Andrea, who knows better than most how badly the communications world mangles words, is on the subject both principled and faintly amused. — Daniel Scheffler, Forbes.com, 31 Mar. 2026

One bombshell lawsuit that will, at bare minimum, mangle Diddy’s career, came from a young man who was welcomed into his inner circle and, according to that producer, exited the mogul’s milieu after he was allegedly groomed, abused and exploited. — Kevin Dolak, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English manglen, borrowed from Anglo-French mangler, mahangler, of uncertain origin

Note: Oxford English Dictionary (OED), third edition, tentatively proposes that mangler is a frequentative derivative of mahaigner, etc., "to maim entry 1," though -l- is an English rather than French frequentative formative, and, in any case, the derivation looks phonetically unlikely. There is apparently little evidence for the word outside Anglo-French; Französisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (FEW) mentions a single attestation of the verb in "Old Picard" (altpikardisch); also marginally attested is a derivative demangler in both Old Picard and the modern dialect of Boulogne. OED also suggests influence of Middle Dutch mangelen "to mix, exchange, fight," ultimately akin to Old English mengan "to mix"—see mingle. Along completely different lines, FEW takes mangler as altered by suffix substitution from Old French mangonner "to oppress, mistreat," literally, "to assault with a mangonel," a derivative from the base of mangonel mangonel.

Noun

borrowed from Dutch & German; Dutch mangel, borrowed from early New High German, derivative (with the instrument suffix -el) of Middle High German mange "military engine for throwing stones, ironing press," borrowed from Medieval Latin manga "siege engine," variant of manganum, going back to Late Latin, "contrivance, apparatus" — more at mangonel

Verb (2)

borrowed from Dutch & German mangeln, derivative of mangel mangle entry 2; or derived directly by functional shift from mangle entry 2

First Known Use

Verb (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1696, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

circa 1775, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mangle

• angle
• bangle
• dangle
• jangle
• strangle
• tangle
• wrangle
• disentangle
• entangle
• quadrangle
• triangle
• untangle

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Kids Definition

mangle

1 of 3 verb

man·​gle ˈmaŋ-gəl 

mangled; mangling -g(ə-)liŋ 

1

: to cut, bruise, or hack with repeated blows or strokes

2

: to spoil or injure in making or performing : botch

mangle a speech

mangler

-g(ə-)lər 

noun

mangle

2 of 3 noun

: a machine for ironing laundry by passing it between heated rollers

mangle

3 of 3 verb

mangled; mangling -g(ə-)liŋ 

: to press or smooth with a mangle

mangler

-g(ə-)lər 

noun