Illustration of tackle
- tackle 2b
1
: a set of the equipment used in a particular activity : gear
fishing tackle
2
a
: a ship's rigging
b
: an assemblage of ropes and pulleys arranged to gain mechanical advantage for hoisting and pulling
3
a
: the act or an instance of tackling
b(1)
: either of two offensive football players positioned on each side of the center and between guard and end
(2)
: either of two football players positioned on the inside of a defensive line
tackled; tackling
ˈta-k(ə-)liŋ 
1
a
: to seize, take hold of, or grapple with especially with the intention of stopping or subduing
b
: to seize and throw down or stop (an opposing player with the ball) in football
2
: to set about dealing with
tackle the problem
3
: to attach or secure with or as if with tackle
: to tackle an opposing player in football
Synonyms
Examples of tackle in a Sentence
Noun
a box for fishing tackle
He made two tackles in the first half.
Verb
The police officer tackled him as he tried to escape.
He was tackled at the line of scrimmage.
I'll tackle my homework later.
We found new ways to tackle the problem.
Recent Examples on the Web
Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2024
Saints could take a defensive end here, but the run on offensive tackles continues.
—Clarence E. Hill Jr., Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 8 Apr. 2024
Last week, fellow beat writer Jesse Newell projected the Chiefs taking tackle Kingsley Suamataia of BYU.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 7 Apr. 2024
In re-signing with the Dolphins, offensive tackle Kendall Lamm — in a video message for fans — indicated that this will be his final season.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 5 Apr. 2024
His league-leading tackles number substantiates that.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 5 Apr. 2024
There’s no room in this game for anything except light or ultralight tackle to present tiny lures properly and to detect subtle hits.
—Don Wirth, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
Promising Boise State receiver gets tips from a Super Bowl champion
March 16, 2024 4:00 AM
Beresford started 27 consecutive games at right tackle for the Broncos the past two seasons.
—Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 25 Mar. 2024
The 6-foot-3, 263-pound pass rusher produced 13 sacks and 28 tackles for loss during his college career.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 27 Mar. 2024
Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
Last week, the Indian Health Ministry met with the National Disaster Management Authority to assess how prepared the country was to tackle heatwaves.
—Astha Rajvanshi, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024
In the aftermath of the violence, the new administration promised steps to tackle far-right misinformation.
—Niha Masih, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
What has Minneapolis said? Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey vetoed the legislation in March, asking the council to wait on a state study of the driver pay issue to see if there could be another way of tackling the problem.
—Melvin Backman, Quartz, 8 Apr. 2024
None of these problems is trivial, but they’ve been substantially tackled over the past 30 years of BCI research.
—S. I. Rosenbaum, The Atlantic, 7 Apr. 2024
Related Articles Prop 1: Voters pass measure pushed by Gov. Newsom to tackle homelessness crisis in razor-thin win
Today, Think Long and the Stanford team are circulating a proposal to funders to apply Deliberative Polling to the measures this November.
—Joe Mathews, The Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2024
As for more practical matters, like what’ll happen to their possessions when they’re gone or their medical care and burial preferences, tackling them head-on is the best way to calm your fear, according to Dr. Ibeh.
—Cathryne Keller, SELF, 5 Apr. 2024
Studio negotiators have been talking for nearly a month with the largest union representing Hollywood film crews, and have still not tackled most of the major issues on the table.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 29 Mar. 2024
Noun
Advertisement In recent practices, converted defensive tackle Devin Aupiu and Navy transfer Jacob Busic have been the first-team edge rushers.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2024
Saints could take a defensive end here, but the run on offensive tackles continues.
—Clarence E. Hill Jr., Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 8 Apr. 2024
Last week, fellow beat writer Jesse Newell projected the Chiefs taking tackle Kingsley Suamataia of BYU.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 7 Apr. 2024
In re-signing with the Dolphins, offensive tackle Kendall Lamm — in a video message for fans — indicated that this will be his final season.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 5 Apr. 2024
His league-leading tackles number substantiates that.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 5 Apr. 2024
There’s no room in this game for anything except light or ultralight tackle to present tiny lures properly and to detect subtle hits.
—Don Wirth, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
Promising Boise State receiver gets tips from a Super Bowl champion
March 16, 2024 4:00 AM
Beresford started 27 consecutive games at right tackle for the Broncos the past two seasons.
—Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 25 Mar. 2024
The 6-foot-3, 263-pound pass rusher produced 13 sacks and 28 tackles for loss during his college career.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 27 Mar. 2024
Verb
What’s happening: Just over two years ago, the world’s largest lenders and asset managers gathered in Glasgow and pledged to spend a collective $130 trillion (that’s nearly five times larger than the US economy) to tackle climate change.
—Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
Last week, the Indian Health Ministry met with the National Disaster Management Authority to assess how prepared the country was to tackle heatwaves.
—Astha Rajvanshi, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024
In the aftermath of the violence, the new administration promised steps to tackle far-right misinformation.
—Niha Masih, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
What has Minneapolis said? Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey vetoed the legislation in March, asking the council to wait on a state study of the driver pay issue to see if there could be another way of tackling the problem.
—Melvin Backman, Quartz, 8 Apr. 2024
None of these problems is trivial, but they’ve been substantially tackled over the past 30 years of BCI research.
—S. I. Rosenbaum, The Atlantic, 7 Apr. 2024
Related Articles Prop 1: Voters pass measure pushed by Gov. Newsom to tackle homelessness crisis in razor-thin win
Today, Think Long and the Stanford team are circulating a proposal to funders to apply Deliberative Polling to the measures this November.
—Joe Mathews, The Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2024
As for more practical matters, like what’ll happen to their possessions when they’re gone or their medical care and burial preferences, tackling them head-on is the best way to calm your fear, according to Dr. Ibeh.
—Cathryne Keller, SELF, 5 Apr. 2024
Studio negotiators have been talking for nearly a month with the largest union representing Hollywood film crews, and have still not tackled most of the major issues on the table.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 29 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tackle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near tackle
Cite this Entry
“Tackle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tackle. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
1
: a set of special equipment : gear
fishing tackle
2
: an arrangement of ropes and wheels for hoisting or pulling something heavy
3
a
: the act or an instance of tackling
b
: a football player who is positioned on the line of scrimmage and inside the ends
tackle
2 of 2 verb
tackled; tackling
ˈtak-(ə-)liŋ
1
: to seize or take hold of especially in order to stop or throw down
2
: to set about dealing with
tackle a problem
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