snarl Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun a vicious angry growl
noun an angry vicious expression
noun something jumbled or confused
maze; tangle.
- a tangle of government regulations
verb utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone
snap.
- The sales clerk snapped a reply at the angry customer
- The guard snarled at us
verb make a snarling noise or move with a snarling noise
- Bullets snarled past us
verb twist together or entwine into a confusing mass
entangle; tangle; mat.
- The child entangled the cord
verb make more complicated or confused through entanglements
embrangle; snarl up.

Etymol. uncertain.

imperfect & past participle Snarled ; present participle & verbal noun Snarling

To form raised work upon the outer surface of (thin metal ware) by the repercussion of a snarling iron upon the inner surface.

From Snare, v. t.

To entangle; to complicate; to involve in knots; as, to snarl a skein of thread. "Her snarled hair." Spenser.
To embarrass; to insnare.
[The] question that they would have snarled him with. Latimer.

A knot or complication of hair, thread, or the like, difficult to disentangle; entanglement; hence, intricate complication; embarrassing difficulty.

From Snar.

To growl, as an angry or surly dog; to gnarl; to utter grumbling sounds. "An angry cur snarls while he feeds." Dryden & Lee.
To speak crossly; to talk in rude, surly terms.
It is malicious and unmanly to snarl at the little lapses of a pen, from which Virgil himself stands not exempted. Dryden.

The act of snarling; a growl; a surly or peevish expression; an angry contention.