What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Thrall vs Yoke - What's the difference?

thrall | yoke |

As nouns the difference between thrall and yoke

is that thrall is one who is enslaved or under mind control while yoke is a bar or frame of wood by which two oxen are joined at the heads or necks for working together.

As verbs the difference between thrall and yoke

is that thrall is to make a thrall while yoke is to link or to join.

thrall

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • One who is enslaved or under mind control.
  • * 14th century , ,
    • My servant, which that is my thrall by right
  • * 1915 , ,
    • And there were household slaves in golden collars that burned of a plenty there with her, and nine female thralls , and eight male slaves of the Angles that were of gentle birth and battle-captured.
  • (uncountable) The state of being under the control of another person.
  • * 1864 , ,
    • Go: release him from the thrall of Hautia.
  • * 1889 , ,
    • [Y]our friend, John Edward, is at the other end of the room with his whole soul held in thrall by photographs of other people's relatives.
  • * 1911 , ,
    • In her brain she was dimly conscious of balancing, or striving to balance, the abject shame which had him now in thrall against the one compelling act of courage which had flung him grandly and madly on to the point of danger.
  • A shelf; a stand for barrels, etc.

    • Related terms

    * enthrall * thralldom

    References

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To make a thrall.

    • yoke

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A bar or frame of wood by which two oxen are joined at the heads or necks for working together.
  • * Alexander Pope
    • A yearling bullock to thy name shall smoke, / Untamed, unconscious of the galling yoke .
  • A pair (of animals, especially oxen).
  • * 1526 , William Tyndale, trans. Bible , Luke XIV:
    • And another sayd: I have bought fyve yooke of oxen, and I must goo to prove them, I praye the have me excused.
  • A frame made to fit the neck and shoulders of a person, used for carrying a pair of buckets, etc., one at each end of the frame.
  • A frame worn on the neck of an animal, such as a cow, pig, or goose, to prevent passage through a fence.
  • (figuratively) A burden; something which represses or restrains a person.
  • A frame or convex piece by which a bell is hung for ringing it.
  • The part of a shirt that stretches over the shoulders, usually made out of a doubled piece of fabric. Or, a pair of fabric panels on trousers (especially jeans) or a skirt, across the back of the garment below the waistband.
  • * 1913 ,
    • [...] this city child was dressed in what was then called the "Kate Greenaway" manner, and her red cashmere frock, gathered full from the yoke , came almost to the floor.
  • (bodybuilding) Well-developed muscles of the neck and shoulders.
  • * 2010 , Jim Wendler, "Build an NFL Neck", Men's Fitness (April), page 73.
    • Nothing says you're a dedicated lifter and true athlete more than a massive yoke —that is, the muscles of the neck, traps, and rear delts.
  • (aviation) The column-mounted of an aircraft.
  • (electronics) The electro-magnetic coil that deflects the electron beam in a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube).
  • (nautical) A fitting placed across the head of the rudder with a line attached at each end by which a boat may be steered. In modern use it is primarily found in sailing canoes and kayaks.
  • (agriculture, dated, uncommon) An alternative name for a cowpoke.
  • (glassblowing) A Y-shaped stand used to support a blowpipe or punty while reheating in the glory hole.
  • (engineering) A bent crosspiece connecting two other parts.
  • A tie securing two timbers together, not used for part of a regular truss, but serving a temporary purpose, as to provide against unusual strain.
  • (dressmaking) A band shaped to fit the shoulders or the hips, and joined to the upper full edge of the waist or the skirt.
  • The amount of land ploughed in a day by a pair of oxen.
    • (Gardner)
  • A portion of the working day.
    • to work two yokes , i.e. to work both morning and afternoon
    (Halliwell)
  • (informal, Ireland) A miscellaneous object; a gadget.

    • Synonyms

    * (aviation) control wheel

    Derived terms

    * pass under the yoke * under the yoke

    Verb

    (yok)
  • To link or to join.
  • *
    • Muriel and Benjamin yoked themselves into an old governess-cart and did their share.
  • To unite, to connect.
  • * Bible, 2 Corinthians vi. 14
    • Be ye not unequally yoked with unbelievers.
  • To enslave; to bring into bondage; to restrain; to confine.
  • * Milton
    • Then were they yoked with garrisons.
  • * Hudibras
    • The words and promises that yoke / The conqueror are quickly broke.

    Derived terms

    * yoke together