Word of the Day

: February 10, 2008

truckle

verb TRUCK-ul

What It Means

: to act in a subservient manner : submit

truckle in Context

Jumana decided that she had had enough of her older sister's demands and vowed not to truckle to her anymore.

Did You Know?

When "truckle" was first used in English in the 15th century, it meant "small wheel" or "pulley." Such small wheels were often attached to the underside of low beds, to allow them to be easily moved under high beds for storage. These beds came to be known as "truckle beds" (or "trundle beds"), and a verb "truckle" -- meaning "to sleep in a truckle bed" -- came into being. By the 17th century, the fact that truckle beds were pushed under larger standard beds had inspired a figurative sense of "truckle": "to yield to the wishes of another" or "to bend obsequiously." The initial verb meaning became obsolete; the newer sense is fairly rare but is still in use.