Word of the Day

: July 30, 2008

wangle

verb WANG-gul

What It Means

1 : to adjust or manipulate for personal or fraudulent ends

2 : to make or get by devious means : finagle

wangle in Context

Steve didn't tell Sharon how he'd wangled an extra week of vacation, and she didn't care as long as it meant they could go to Greece for their honeymoon.

Did You Know?

"Wangle," a verb of uncertain origin, has been used in its newest sense, "to obtain by sly methods," since at least the early 20th century. Occasionally, one sees "wrangle" used similarly, as in "wrangle a huge salary," but more typically it means "to argue or engage in controversy." Did the "obtain" sense of "wrangle" evolve through confusion with "wangle"? Not exactly. "Wrangle" was used with the meaning "to obtain by arguing or bargaining" as early as 1624, long before "wangle" appeared in the language. The sense had all but disappeared until recent decades, however, and its revival may very well have been influenced by "wangle." The "obtain" sense of "wangle" is currently more common than that of "wrangle," but both are considered standard.