Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A bit for a horse, consisting of two bars joined at the center, as by a joint.
  • transitive verb To put on or control with a snaffle.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To bridle; hold or manage with a bridle.
  • To clutch or seize by the snaffle.
  • To speak through the nose.
  • noun A bridle consisting of a slender bit-mouth with a single rein and without a curb; a snaffle-bit.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To put a snaffle in the mouth of; to subject to the snaffle; to bridle.
  • noun A kind of bridle bit, having a joint in the part to be placed in the mouth, and rings and cheek pieces at the ends, but having no curb; -- called also snaffle bit.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A broad-mouthed, loose-ringed bit (metal in a horse's mouth). It brings pressure to bear on the tongue and bars and corners of the mouth. Often used as a training bit.
  • verb to put on, or control with, a snaffle
  • verb to grab or seize; to snap up
  • verb informal to purloin, or obtain by devious means

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb get hold of or seize quickly and easily
  • noun a simple jointed bit for a horse; without a curb
  • verb fit or restrain with a snaffle

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Origin unknown.]

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Examples

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  • A jointed bit for a horse.

    October 15, 2007