What does "jangle" mean?
A rattling metallic sound; a clang.
Jangle
/ˈdʒæŋɡl̩/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A rattling metallic sound; a clang.
- Grammar: jangle is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: jingle, agree to disagree, annoy, babel.
- Useful contrasts: agree, calm, conform.
- Usage evidence: My nerves jangle when I'm sharply disturbed in sleep.
How to use "jangle"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "jangle" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "jangle" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "jangle" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "jangle" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "jangle" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "jingle" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "jangle", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A rattling metallic sound; a clang. countable, uncountable
"E'en as she spake they heard the musical jangle of sleigh-bells, / First far off, with a dreamy sound and faint in the distance, […]"
- 2 a metallic sound wordnet
- 3 The sound of people talking noisily. countable, figuratively, uncountable
- 4 Arguing, contention, squabbling. archaic, countable, figuratively, uncountable
"[I]t may be juſtly ask't, whether Timothy by this here written might know what was to be knowne concerning the orders of Church-governours or no? If he might, then in ſuch a cleere text as this may we know too without further jangle; […]"
- 5 A sound typified by undistorted, treble-heavy electric guitars, played in a droning chordal style, characteristic of 1960s folk rock and 1980s indie rock music. attributive, countable, uncountable
"If you like ‘jangle guitar’—where the guitar parts are chordal, arpeggiated and rhythmic—listen to players like Roger McGuinn of The Byrds, Peter Buck with R.E.M. (Life’s Rich Pageant) or Johnny Marr with The Smiths (The Queen Is Dead)."
Verb
- 1 To cause (something) to make a rattling metallic sound. transitive
"Now ſee what noble and moſt ſoueraigne reaſon / Like ſweet bells iangled, out of time, and harſh, /That vnmatcht forme, and ſtature of blowne youth / Blaſted with extacie, […]"
- 2 make a sound typical of metallic objects wordnet
- 3 To express or say (something) in an argumentative or harsh manner. transitive
- 4 To irritate or jar (something). figuratively, transitive
"The sound from the next apartment jangled my nerves."
- 5 To make a rattling metallic sound. intransitive
"A ſincere Heart that would ſerve God with his beſt, findeth more in a duty, than he could expect: and by Praying gets more of the fervency and Ardours of praying, as a Bell may be long a raiſing, but when it is up it jangleth not as it did at firſt."
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 To speak in an angry or harsh manner. archaic, intransitive
"What jangleſt thou Jedburgh? thou jags for nought, / There ſhal a guilful groom dwell thee within, / The towre that thou truſts in, as the truth is, / Shal be traced with a trace, trow thou none other: […]"
- 7 To quarrel verbally; to wrangle. archaic, intransitive
"Good witts will be iangling, but gentles agree, / This ciuill warre of wittes were much better vſed / On Nauar and his Bookmen, for heere tis abuſed."
- 8 Of a person: to speak loudly or too much; to chatter, to prate; of a bird: to make a noisy chattering sound. Northern-England, intransitive
"It was uſual then about midnight, when there was no noiſe in the houſe, but all ſtill, to hear the two nightingales jangling, and talking with each other, and plainly imitating men's diſcourſes."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"My nerves jangle when I'm sharply disturbed in sleep."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "jangle"?
Common synonyms include: jingle, agree to disagree, annoy, babel, be at cross-purposes, be at variance.
How do you use "jangle" in a sentence?
My nerves jangle when I'm sharply disturbed in sleep.
How do you pronounce "jangle"?
Pronounced /ˈdʒæŋɡl̩/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English janglen (“to talk excessively, chatter; to talk idly, gossip; to nag; to complain, grumble; to argue, debate; to discuss, talk; to talk indistinctly, jabber; to make a noise or outcry; of a bird: to chatter, twitter”) [and other forms], from Old French jangler (“to chatter, gossip; to argue noisily; to bawl”) [and other forms]; further etymology uncertain, perhaps from Old Dutch *jangelon (“to jeer”) (compare Middle Dutch jangelen (“to murmur, grumble, buzz, mutter, drone, simmer”), modern Dutch jengelen (“to whine, persistently nag, whimper”), though the Oxford English Dictionary finds this improbable) and ultimately imitative.
Etymology 2
From Middle English jangle (“gossip, idle talk; a dispute”), from Anglo-Norman jangle and Old French jangle (“gossip, idle talk; a dispute”), from Old French jangler (“to chatter, gossip; to argue noisily; to bawl”): see further at etymology 1. Later uses are derived directly from the verb. Sense 3 (“sound typified by undistorted, treble-heavy electric guitars”) is said to derive from a line in the song Mr. Tambourine Man (1965) by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan (born 1941): “Hey, Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me / In the jingle jangle morning, I’ll come following you.”