sniggle

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsnɪ.ɡəl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Etymology 1

From an alteration (perhaps due to giggle) of snigger, itself a variant of snicker.

Verb

sniggle (third-person singular simple present sniggles, present participle sniggling, simple past and past participle sniggled)

1. (intransitive) To chortle or chuckle; snicker.
   • 1864, Elizabeth Gaskell, Cousin Phillis:

     Ay! you see you'll laugh at the bare thought on it — and I'll be bound th' minister, though he's not a laughing man, would ha' sniggled at th' notion of falling in love wi' the child.

Etymology 2

Sniggling equipment

See snig (“a kind of eel”) +‎ -le (frequentative verbal suffix).

Verb

sniggle (third-person singular simple present sniggles, present participle sniggling, simple past and past participle sniggled)

1. (intransitive) To fish for eels by thrusting a baited needle or hook into their dens.
   • [2012 December 1, “Transparent gold”, in The Economist‎^[1], →ISSN:

     But rampant poaching (the correct term for catching a grown-up eel with bait is to “sniggle”, though elvers are caught with something more like a giant sieve) is now prompting authorities to crack down well in advance of next year’s season.]

2. (transitive) To catch by this means.
3. (transitive, figurative) To ensnare.

Derived terms

• sniggler

Etymology 3

From snig or an alteration of snag +‎ -le.

Verb

sniggle (third-person singular simple present sniggles, present participle sniggling, simple past and past participle sniggled)

1. (obsolete) To steal something of little value.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:steal

References

• Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Thesaurus 1993.

Anagrams

• gesling, gingles, leggins, niggles