snarled; snarling; snarls
1
: to cause to become knotted and intertwined : tangle
2
: to make excessively complicated
: to become snarled
1
: a tangle especially of hairs or thread : knot
2
: a tangled situation
traffic snarls
snarled; snarling; snarls
1
: to growl with a snapping, gnashing, or display of teeth
2
: to give vent to anger in surly language
: to utter or express with a snarl or by snarling
Examples of snarl in a Sentence
Verb (1)
you'll be awfully sorry if you snarl your fishing line
Noun (1)
to no avail, the city promotes carpooling to help ease the traffic snarls that always accompany rush hour
Verb (2)
she snarled at me after I kept badgering her with questions
Recent Examples on the Web
Sean Kingsley, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2025
The cages help shelter the vulnerable young oysters, and keep them from sinking into the mud, serving the function of oyster reefs, which once rose above the surface of the Chesapeake in some places, snarling passing ships.
—Christine Condon, Baltimore Sun, 24 May 2025
John Meyer, Denver Post, 5 May 2025
Traffic snarls are one reason why Hiaasen ultimately returned to eastern Florida.
—Marnie Hunter, CNN Money, 26 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for snarl
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Verb
The location was evidently a sacred place where the ancient buried their dead and saber-tooth tigers snarled.
—Sean Kingsley, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2025
The cages help shelter the vulnerable young oysters, and keep them from sinking into the mud, serving the function of oyster reefs, which once rose above the surface of the Chesapeake in some places, snarling passing ships.
—Christine Condon, Baltimore Sun, 24 May 2025
Noun
More than 100,000 motorists pass through Wheat Ridge, Denver and southwestern Adams County every day on Interstates 70 and 76, often in maddening traffic snarls.
—John Meyer, Denver Post, 5 May 2025
Traffic snarls are one reason why Hiaasen ultimately returned to eastern Florida.
—Marnie Hunter, CNN Money, 26 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for snarl
Cite this Entry
“Snarl.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snarl. Accessed 28 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
snarl
1 of 4 noun1
: a tangle especially of hairs or thread : knot
2
: a tangled situation
a traffic snarl
snarl
2 of 4 verb
: to get into a tangle
snarl
3 of 4 verb1
: to growl with a snapping or showing of teeth
2
: to speak in an angry way
3
: to utter with a snarl
snarler
noun
snarl
4 of 4 noun
: an angry growl
Etymology
Noun
Middle English snarle "snare, noose," probably from snarlen "to trap, entangle"
Verb
from obsolete snar "to growl"
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