gradual entanglement
origins:
grad·u·al adj. Advancing or progressing by regular or continuous degrees: gradual erosion; a gradual slope.
n. Roman Catholic Church The liturgical book containing the chants for the Mass. A biblical text sung between the Epistle and the Gospel of the Mass.
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[Middle English, having steps, from Medieval Latin gradulis, from Latin gradus, step; see grade. N., Middle English from Medieval Latin gradule, the part of the service sung by the choir from the altar steps, gradual, from neuter sing. of gradulis.]--------------------------------------------------------------------------------gradu·al·ly adv. gradu·al·ness n.
gradualadj 1: proceeding in small stages; "a gradual increase in prices" [ant: sudden] 2: of a topographical gradient; not steep or abrupt; "a gradual slope" [ant: steep] n : (Roman Catholic Church) an antiphon (usually from the Book of Psalms) immediately after the epistle at Mass.

TA L M NEN NG E E T G R A D U A LEN TANGLE MENTG R A D U A L gradual ENTANGLEMENT

origins:
en·tan·gle tr.v. en·tan·gled, en·tan·gling, en·tan·gles To twist together or entwine into a confusing mass; snarl. To complicate; confuse. To involve in or as if in a tangle. See Synonyms at catch. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------en·tangle·ment n. en·tangler n. entanglement
n : an intricate trap that entangles or ensnares its victim [syn: web]
tan·gle2 ( P ) Pronunciation Key (tnggl)n. A large seaweed of the genus Laminaria.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------[Of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse thöngull, seaweed.]
tan·gle1 ( P ) Pronunciation Key (tnggl)v. tan·gled, tan·gling, tan·gles v. tr.To mix together or intertwine in a confused mass; snarl. To involve in hampering or awkward complications; entangle. To catch and hold in or as if in a net; entrap. See Synonyms at catch.
v. intr.To be or become entangled. Informal. To enter into argument, dispute, or conflict: tangled with the law.
n. A confused, intertwined mass. A jumbled or confused state or condition. A state of bewilderment. Informal. An argument or altercation. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------[Middle English tangilen, to involve in an embarrassing situation, variant of tagilen, probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Swedish dialectal taggla, to entangle.]--------------------------------------------------------------------------------tangly adj. Main Entry: tan·glePronunciation: 'ta[ng]-g&lFunction: noun: NEUROFIBRILLARY TANGLE Source: Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc. tangle n 1: a twisted and tangled mass that is highly interwoven; "they carved their way through the tangle of vines" 2: something jumbled or confused; "a tangle of government regulations" [syn: snarl, maze] v 1: force into some kind of situation, condition, or course of action; "They were swept up by the events"; "don't drag me into this business" [syn: embroil, sweep, sweep up, drag, drag in] 2: tangle or complicate; "a ravelled story" [syn: ravel, knot] [ant: unravel] 3: disarrange or rumple; dishevel; "The strong wind tousled my hair" [syn: tousle, dishevel] 4: twist together or entwine into a confusing mass; "The child entangled the cord" [syn: entangle, mat, snarl] [ant: disentangle]