wangle — to obtain something by persuading someone or by clever or devious means
Part of speech: VERB
Definition: to obtain something by persuading someone or by clever or devious means
Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈwæŋɡəl/
Example Sentences
- She wangled her way into the VIP section by pretending to be a celebrity's assistant.
- Tom wangled a discount by complaining about the tiny scratch on his phone.
- Can you wangle some extra vacation days from your boss?
wangle
VERB[/ˈwæŋɡəl/]
to obtain something by persuading someone or by clever or devious means
The clever cat rubbed against the grumpy butcher's leg to wangle a free fish.
WAN(want) + GLE(giggle) — she got the VIP pass she wanted by giggling to wangle it from the guard.
The brother dangled a shiny candy to wangle the robot toy from his sister.
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
Originating from late 19th-century British slang, 'wangle' was initially a term used in the printing industry. The word evolved from meanings of 'to shake' or 'to manipulate' into its modern sense of 'to obtain something through cunning or devious means.'
Breakdown
The word developed from a printing industry jargon term meaning 'to manipulate' (wangle, possibly related to 'wangle' as a variant of wrangle), which metaphorically extended to mean 'to obtain something cleverly or by scheming.'
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“She wangled her way into the VIP section by pretending to be a celebrity's assistant.”
“Tom wangled a discount by complaining about the tiny scratch on his phone.”
“Can you wangle some extra vacation days from your boss?”
“He wangled his way out of doing the dishes by suddenly remembering an important phone call.”
📚Related Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
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