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enmeshment

enmeshment

7.8
A state where something is caught in a net or tangled in lines
  • noun
  • /ɪnˈmɛʃmənt/
translation icon : entrelazamiento
  • Divers carefully removed the dolphin from the enmeshment of discarded fishing lines.

Examples

  • The bird struggled to escape from the enmeshment of the plastic netting.

  • The enmeshment of roots made it difficult to dig up the old tree.

  • The fish found itself in a state of enmeshment in the net.

  • There was a significant enmeshment of the threads in the fabric.

  • The rescue team quickly freed the turtle from the enmeshment of fishing nets it had accidentally swum into.

  • The child's toys were in a state of enmeshment as the strings tangled around each other.

  • After the storm, the old boat was found in a deep enmeshment of debris and branches.

Synonyms

entanglement
vsenmeshment
11 6.6

A difficult situation that traps someone, often with lies

is the physical state of being caught in a net or mesh
ensnarement
vsenmeshment
1 8.3

A situation in which someone is trapped by a trick or tool

is specifically about being held in a netlike material rather than by trickery
intertwinement
vsenmeshment
7.0

Things twisted and woven together so they are closely connected

is about being stuck in a mesh rather than simply connected together
entwinement
vsenmeshment
7.2

A state in which things are twisted or woven closely together

is about being trapped or immobilized rather than merely twisted together
involution
vsenmeshment
9.9

Folding inward, as when petals close

is more about being caught in a net than inward folding

Antonyms

1.8

To let someone or something go free from being held

127 3.9

The act of setting people free from control or unfair treatment

How Entangled

enmeshment
7.8
entanglement
3 6.3
tangle
22 3.9

Surface Forms

enmeshment singular
enmeshments plural

Morphology

enmeshment = enmesh (transparent) = en + mesh + ment

A direct nominalisation of the literal verb 'enmesh' describing the state of being caught in a mesh; meaning follows straightforwardly from the base.

Etymology

Enmeshment comes from en- 'in' plus mesh 'net', so it originally pictures being 'in a net'. This makes it easy to see the literal meaning: being physically caught or tangled, as a bird or fish can be in a net.