yoke

noun

\ ˈyōk

plural yokes

Definition of yoke

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : 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

3a(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

yoke

verb

yoked; yoking

Definition of yoke (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1a(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

Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More about yoke

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Examples of yoke in a Sentence

Noun a people able at last to throw off the yoke and to embrace freedom Verb The two oxen were yoked together. yoked several ideas together to come up with a new theory

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Lady Hideko is a wealthy heiress living on a remote estate who dreams of escaping the yoke of her abusive Uncle Kouzuki, who keeps her trapped at home performing readings of erotic novels. — Marina Liao, Marie Claire, "14 Great Korean Romance Movies You Can Stream Right Now," 23 Feb. 2021 The egg yoke should remain at least half the ingredients. — Mary Colurso | Mcolurso@al.com, al, "Thanksgiving 2020: Roy Wood Jr. shares his mom’s recipe for deviled eggs," 19 Nov. 2020 The wheel has a cut-off yoke design inspired by fighter jets, with knobs and buttons for wipers, lights, volume and turn signals. — Mike Duff, Car and Driver, "1817-HP Hennessey Venom F5 Revealed, Claims 311-MPH Top Speed," 15 Dec. 2020 Carefully center and drill the bolt hole in the yoke. — Roy Berendsohn And Joseph Truini, Popular Mechanics, "Make a Gift: A Wooden Wagon for the Kids," 28 Nov. 2020 Apply a coat of polyurethane to the top of the yoke. — Roy Berendsohn And Joseph Truini, Popular Mechanics, "Make a Gift: A Wooden Wagon for the Kids," 28 Nov. 2020 Chop ingredients with a knife in very fine pieces to keep crunchy texture (use of a chopper or blender will over power the egg yoke). — Mary Colurso | Mcolurso@al.com, al, "Thanksgiving 2020: Roy Wood Jr. shares his mom’s recipe for deviled eggs," 19 Nov. 2020 The yoke of pressure and sky-high expectations Friday belongs to Jackie’s Warrior, unbeaten in four races including two Grade 1 wins. — John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, "Breeders’ Cup Juvenile showcasing top 2-year-olds to highlight the 14-race event," 5 Nov. 2020 The yoke and harness are comfortable for extended periods of wear. — John B. Snow, Outdoor Life, "The 8 Best Binocular Chest Packs, Tested," 4 Nov. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Trump, meanwhile, managed to yoke the meeting to his administration’s campaign to buttress Israel on the world stage. — Washington Post, "The mirage of Trump’s ‘peace’ deals," 15 Sep. 2020 Progress required that citizens yoke themselves to an immoral economy in ever more complex ways. — R.h. Lossin, The New York Review of Books, "The Revolutionary Thoreau," 4 Sep. 2020 Munch has the daring to yoke this world-menacing science fiction and world-historical politics to peculiarly intimate settings. — Richard Brody, The New Yorker, "“The 11th Green,” Reviewed: A Wild Fantasy of U.S. History, Conspiracy, and U.F.O.s," 25 June 2020 Yet none of the other technocrats succeeded in heading a second government, as Mr Conte has done since last September, when the M5S switched partners to yoke itself to the centre-left Democratic Party. — The Economist, "No longer a figurehead Why Italy’s technocratic prime minister is so popular," 27 June 2020 Still, these mutually resentful women can’t disengage: their womanhood, and an accompanying unease in the world, keep them yoked together, entangled in talk. — Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, "Kathleen Collins’s Otherworldly Women," 20 Apr. 2020 That meant that some better neologisms got no ink that week, because they were yoked to one or two meh or problematic ones. — Washington Post, "Style Conversational Week 1371: We’re permutation nation," 13 Feb. 2020 Those choices in turn become collars, yoking us to the reality, no matter how gilded, of the daily grind. — Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, "When the Checkpoints Come," 19 Mar. 2020 In close to three years in power, the administration has courted or hosted virtually all the region’s unelected potentates, yoking its anti-Iranian agenda in part to the concerns of a clutch of Arab sheikhs and princes. — Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, "The Trump administration’s obsession with an ancient Persian emperor," 1 Nov. 2019

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.