snarl

1 of 4

verb (1)

ˈsnär(-ə)l 

snarled; snarling; snarls

transitive verb

1

: to cause to become knotted and intertwined : tangle

2

: to make excessively complicated

intransitive verb

: to become snarled

snarl

2 of 4

noun (1)

1

: a tangle especially of hairs or thread : knot

2

: a tangled situation

traffic snarls

snarl

3 of 4

verb (2)

snarled; snarling; snarls

intransitive verb

1

: to growl with a snapping, gnashing, or display of teeth

2

: to give vent to anger in surly language

transitive verb

: to utter or express with a snarl or by snarling

snarl

4 of 4

noun (2)

: a surly angry growl

snarly

ˈsnär-lē 

adjective

Synonyms of snarl

Verb (1)

• knot
• tangle

Noun (1)

• jam
• congestion

Verb (2)

• bark
• shout
• yell
• scream

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

Verb

The westbound lanes of Interstate 30 were closed, snarling traffic for the morning commute as crews worked to clear the scene. — Briauna Brown, CBS News, 6 Nov. 2026

One person died and two others were taken to hospitals Thursday after a crash involving a big rig that snarled traffic on Highway 99 in Elk Grove. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 5 Nov. 2026

Noun

In April 2025, HBO announced that Essiedu had won the role of Snape—played with an inimitable snarl in the film franchise by the late great Alan Rickman. — Chris Murphy, Vanity Fair, 10 Nov. 2026

To get to Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, take the metro (look for the brown Metro Line 9) to avoid getting entangled in traffic snarls. — Alan Chazaro, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English, to trap, entangle, probably frequentative of snaren to snare

Noun (1)

Middle English snarle snare, noose, probably from snarlen, verb

Verb (2)

frequentative of obsolete English snar to growl; akin to Middle Low German snorren to drone, rattle

First Known Use

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (1)

1609, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1589, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun (2)

1613, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing snarl

• snarl-up

Rhymes for snarl

• carl
• harl
• parle

Kids Definition

snarl

1 of 4 noun

ˈsnär(-ə)l 

1

: 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 verb

1

: 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"