yoke

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noun \ ˈyōk \

Definition of yoke

plural yokes

1 a :a wooden bar or frame by which two draft animals (such as oxen) are joined at the heads or necks for working together

b :an arched device formerly laid on the neck of a defeated person

c :a frame fitted to a person's shoulders to carry a load in two equal portions

d :a bar by which the end of the tongue of a wagon or carriage is suspended from the collars of the harness

e (1) :a crosspiece on the head of a boat's rudder

(2) :an airplane control operating the elevators and ailerons

f :a frame from which a bell is hung

g :a clamp or similar piece that embraces two parts to hold or unite them in position

2 plural usually yoke :two animals yoked or worked together

3 a (1) :an oppressive agency

(2) :servitude, bondage

b :tie, link; especially :marriage

4 :a fitted or shaped piece at the top of a skirt or at the shoulder of various garments

See yoke defined for English-language learners

See yoke defined for kids

Examples of yoke in a Sentence

a people able at last to throw off the yoke and to embrace freedom

Recent Examples of yoke from the Web

The thing that was attractive to me was the print, the snaps, and the yoke.

— eliza thompson, Cosmopolitan, "Logan Lucky's Costume Designer Explains How She Made Channing Tatum Look Hot in Overalls," 24 Aug. 2017
Shake that egg, even with a pad around it, and the egg is still hit, the yoke still bounces.

— ailene voisin, sacbee, "Should your kid play football? Concussion fears threaten to sideline high school teams," 19 Aug. 2017
There are rolling carts, backpack-style frames, and yokes—but a simple strap still suffices.

— pippa biddle, The Atlantic, "Why It’s Better to Carry Weight on Your Head," 18 Aug. 2017
Stormy Seas, Regatta and Stearns models also feature yokes and bibs that clip into Grundens deck gear.

— laine welch, Alaska Dispatch News, "Re-examining safety practices in the wake of this year’s commercial fishing deaths," 6 Aug. 2017
Can Democrats sell the country on the opposite idea, that this yoke makes everyone less free?

— brian beutler, New Republic, "Democrats, Not Republicans, Stand for “Freedom” in Health Care," 20 July 2017
After Watson Smith died in spring 2015, Matt Smith continued his father's work building yokes and other essential equipment for oxen pulling.

— nicholas rondinone, courant.com, "For Farmer Fatally Struck In Granby Crash, Oxen 'In His Blood'," 12 July 2017
Paulo Pinheiro, the chairman of the U.N. Commission of Inquiry on Syria, said Wednesday that coalition airstrikes had now deepened suffering in a city already under the yoke of extremist fighters.

— the washington post, NOLA.com, "UN: 'Staggering' loss of life reported from US-led air raids on ISIS-held Raqqa," 14 June 2017
True modern day slavery is the yoke placed on us by the wealthy to bleed us of our independence through economic dominance.

— mercury news readers, The Mercury News, "June 14 Letters: The trouble with a businessman running the White House," 13 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'yoke.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of yoke

Middle English yok, from Old English geoc; akin to Old High German joh yoke, Latin jugum, Greek zygon, Sanskrit yuga, Latin jungere to join

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

yoke Synonyms

Synonyms

bondage, enslavement, servility, servitude, thrall, thralldom (or thraldom), slavery

Antonyms

freedom, liberty

Related Words

peonage, serfdom; dependence (also dependance), subjection, subjugation; captivity, enchainment, imprisonment, incarceration

Near Antonyms

emancipation, enfranchisement, liberation, manumission; autonomy, independence, self-government, sovereignty (also sovranty)

Other Animal Husbandry Terms

apiary, bantam, calico, girth, hogwash, mast, rut

yoke

verb

Definition of yoke

yoked; yoking

transitive verb

1 a (1) :to put a yoke on

(2) :to join in or with a yoke

b :to attach a draft animal to; also :to attach (a draft animal) to something

2 :to join as if by a yoke

3 :to put to work

intransitive verb

:to become joined or linked

See yoke defined for English-language learners

Examples of yoke in a Sentence

The two oxen were yoked together.
yoked several ideas together to come up with a new theory

Recent Examples of yoke from the Web

But the result is rather stilted, yoked to the cult of individual scientific genius, embellished with umoored quotations from Western thinkers, and delivered in a tone that often reads as didactic.

— Philly.com, "Mario Livio's 'Why': A stilted, elitist look at human curiosity," 20 Aug. 2017
And Best retains the character’s elastic physicality and jumpy eagerness throughout the movie, despite being yoked with a still-in-the-works technology and disguised under layers of digital makeup.

— brian raftery, WIRED, "How the Guy Who Played Jar Jar Binks Survived the Fandom Menace," 15 July 2017
A lot of you asked and vented about those two Aussies inevitably yoked together, Bernie Tomic and Nick Kyrgios.

— jon wertheim, SI.com, "50 parting thoughts from Wimbledon 2017," 15 July 2017
Retention has to be yoked to recruiting to make any headway.

— carlie kollath wells, NOLA.com, "2 injured in 7th Ward shooting, New Orleans police say," 7 July 2017
POVERTY AND HARDSHIP can be yoked to shame when the economics of a place get out of whack.

— susan kelleher, The Seattle Times, "Gritty and gentrified, White Center celebrates diversity and community," 31 May 2017
Landrieu is one of the few big city mayors to crusade on the poverty and gun culture taking young black lives -- an issue that draws yawns from the GOP in Congress, yoked to the National Rifle Association.

— guest columnist, NOLA.com, "Mitch Landrieu and the burden of history: Opinion," 19 May 2017
But yoking together the disparate elements of the story Mr. White is trying to tell would have been a tall order for anyone.

— mike hale, New York Times, "Review: ‘The Keepers’ on Netflix: True Crime, and Lots of It," 18 May 2017
The performance of the text seems like figure skaters’ compulsory routines, not freestyle ones; Wilson’s glorious language, carefully yoked to the drama, doesn’t evoke the emotions that the actors are experiencing but merely substitutes for them.

— richard brody, The New Yorker, "What “Fences” Misses About Adapting Plays for the Screen," 5 Jan. 2017

First Known Use of yoke

before 12th century

yoke Synonyms

YOKE Defined for English Language Learners

yoke

play

noun

Definition of yoke for English Language Learners

: a bar or frame that is attached to the heads or necks of two work animals (such as oxen) so that they can pull a plow or heavy load
: something that causes people to be treated cruelly and unfairly especially by taking away their freedom

yoke

verb

Definition of yoke for English Language Learners

: to connect (two animals) by a yoke

YOKE Defined for Kids

yoke

play

noun \ ˈyōk \

Definition of yoke for Students

1 :a wooden bar or frame by which two work animals (as oxen) are harnessed at the heads or necks for drawing a plow or load

2 :a frame fitted to a person's shoulders to carry a load in two equal parts

3 :a clamp that holds or connects two parts

4 plural usually yoke :two animals yoked together

5 :something that brings about pain, suffering, or a loss of freedom

the yoke of tyranny

6 :slavery 1

7 :a fitted or shaped piece at the shoulder of a garment or at the top of a skirt

yoke

verb

Definition of yoke for Students

yoked; yoking

1 :to put a yoke on The oxen were yoked together.

2 :to attach a work animal to

Yoke the horse to the wagon.

Learn More about yoke

See words that rhyme with yoke Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for yoke Spanish Central: Translation of yoke Nglish: Translation of yoke for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of yoke for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about yoke

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Other Animal Husbandry Terms

yoke

Definition of yoke

Examples of yoke in a Sentence

Recent Examples of yoke from the Web

First Known Use of yoke

yoke Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

YOKE Defined for English Language Learners

yoke

Definition of yoke for English Language Learners

yoke

Definition of yoke for English Language Learners

YOKE Defined for Kids

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yoke

Definition of yoke for Students

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