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to snarl up

to snarl up

1 7.8
Make things tangled or blocked so progress slows
  • phrasal verb
  • /snɑrl ʌp/
  • UK
: enredar
  • Traffic is still snarled up on the Williamsburg Bridge.
  • traffic was all snarled up

Examples

  • Let them get all snarled up in their dreary hive.

  • I'd like to, but it might snarl things up.

  • Hey, Sefton, what's snarling up the traffic?

  • It gets snarled up with flotsam, Uncle Frank goes in the water to free it, gets shot, and the girls have to finish the job under fire.

  • Heavy rains snarled up the traffic, causing many drivers to arrive late.

  • If we take that route, it may snarl up the entire journey due to construction.

  • The accident on the main road snarled up traffic for several hours.

Synonyms

to mix up
vsto snarl up
  • Informal
83 2.7

To make people confused and things messy

creates tangled complications that specifically impede making progress
to clog up
vsto snarl up
22 3.7

To block a drain or road so things cannot move through it

produces complication focused on delaying progress rather than literal blockage
to muddy the waters
vsto snarl up
  • Informal
11 7.2

Make a topic more confusing by adding unclear details

creates confusion that more directly blocks progress or action
to gum up
vsto snarl up
  • Informal
8 7.2

To make moving parts stuck with dirt or glue so they stop working

creates confusion that hinders progress rather than physically blocking movement
to tangle
vsto snarl up
7 4.7

To make a story or idea hard to understand

leads to confusion that specifically makes moving forward difficult
to jumble
vsto snarl up
6 3.8

Mix things together in a confused way

creates complexity that also blocks or delays practical forward movement
to snarl
vsto snarl up
6 7.1

To make something more confused or tangled

creates confusion that mainly stops or delays forward movement
to mess up
vsto snarl up
  • Informal
5 3.0

To make something untidy, dirty, or not in the right place

causes confusion that more often hinders progress than mere disorder
to knot
vsto snarl up
4 6.5

To make something tangled and difficult to understand

causes confusion that mainly stops progress rather than just messyness
to muddy up
vsto snarl up
  • Informal
3 6.7

To make an idea or situation unclear and confusing

produces confusion that specifically slows or prevents further progress
to crap up
vsto snarl up
  • Offensive
1 9.9

To become blocked or cause a block by dirt and grease

creates confusing, tangled problems instead of only blocking physical movement
to snafu
vsto snarl up
  • Slang
1 9.9

To make a plan or process become confused and fail

causes confusion mainly through mistakes not necessarily by blocking progress
to ravel
vsto snarl up
1 8.4

To make a situation or story more confusing

produces complications that hinder progress rather than mere disorder
to embrangle
vsto snarl up
  • Archaic
1 9.9

To make something more confused or tangled

causes confusion that specifically slows or blocks further progress
to remuddle the issue
vsto snarl up
9.3

To make a problem more confusing instead of clearer

causes entanglement that tends to obstruct progress rather than clarify

Antonyms

to facilitate
  • Formal
168 4.9

To make a task or process easier and help it happen

13 3.5

To separate threads or cords that are twisted together

How Complicated

to entangle
4 6.3
to snarl up
  • UK
1 7.8
to complicate
136 4.1
to tangle
7 4.7
to jam
112 4.4

Surface Forms

snarl up infinitive
snarled up past
snarled up past participle
snarling up present participle
snarls up third person singular

Morphology

snarl + up

The verb 'snarl' already denotes entangling or jumbling, and the particle 'up' adds a sense of completion/intensification, so the combined meaning 'cause to become tangled or blocked' follows directly from the constituents. This is a regular verb+particle composition common in English (especially for traffic becoming blocked), so a B1 learner who knows the parts should be able to infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

The phrasal verb snarl up comes from the picture of ropes, wires, or hair that get twisted into a tight knot. When the snarl happens and things pile up, nothing can move, so the phrase means to make something 'tangled' or 'blocked'.