From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishtackletack‧le1 /ˈtækəl/ ●●○ S3 W3 verb 1 [transitive]DEAL WITH to try to deal with a difficult problem There is more than one way to tackle the problem. It took twelve fire engines to tackle the blaze.► see thesaurus at deal2 [intransitive, transitive] a) DSto try to take the ball away from an opponent in a game such as football or hockey b) DSto force someone to the ground so that they stop running, in a game such as American football or rugby3 [transitive] British EnglishTALK TO somebody to talk to someone in order to deal with a difficult problemtackle somebody about something When I tackled Susan about it, she admitted she’d made a mistake.4 [transitive]FIGHT to start fighting someone, especially a criminal I certainly couldn’t tackle both of them on my own. —tackler noun [countable]COLLOCATIONSnounstackle a problem/issue/questionThe government has failed to tackle the problem of youth crime.tackle a job/challengeShe said she couldn’t face tackling the job on her own.tackle a blaze/fire (=try to stop it)Fire crews tackling the blaze were hampered by exploding gas canisters.tackle crimeThe police set up a special task force to tackle street crime in the capital.tackle povertyHe believes education is the long-term key to tackling poverty.tackle unemploymentThe government announced a new initiative to tackle unemployment.adverbstackle something head-on (=in a direct and determined way)The issue of cost must be tackled head-on. → See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
tackle• New designs with foot pivots allow snow hikers to tackle almost any hill or valley.• Police forces in the area are trying to tackle car crime head on.• A task force was formed to tackle Charlestown's rising crime rate.• I didn't know if he had the ball or not, so I just tackled him.• Weber does indeed tackle some old art ideas.• Geriatric day hospitals, despite having a considerable minority of dementia sufferers have not in general tackled the issue of integration.• Above all, they did nothing whatsoever to tackle the primary source of peasant rebelliousness: their semi-feudal exploitation.• Many schools are now trying to tackle the problem of drug abuse.• Andersson tackled the question directly by experimentally altering the tail lengths of the males.• How can I best tackle this?• The new laws are aimed at tackling unemployment.tackle ... blaze• Three appliances and a hydraulic platform tackled the blaze.• Two crews from Skipton and volunteers from Grassington tackled the blaze.• About 15 firefighters tackled the blaze in a silo at I'Anson's mill in Masham in the Dales.• Fire crews tackling the blaze were hampered by exploding gas canisters.• Later firemen tackling the blaze were in danger from exploding canisters of acetylene and propane.• Firefighters spent three hours tackling the blaze, which spread through the roof and into an adjoining property in Pensby Road.• About 100 firefighters tackled the blaze whose heat damaged windows of nearby houses.tackletackle2 noun 1 [countable] a) DFan attempt to take the ball from an opponent in a game such as football b) DSan attempt to stop an opponent by forcing them to the ground, especially in American football or rugby2 [countable]DSA a player in American football who stops other players by tackling them or preventing them from moving forward3 [uncountable]DSEQUIPMENT the equipment used in some sports and activities, especially fishing4 [countable, uncountable]TTT ropes and pulleys (=wheels) used for lifting heavy things5 [uncountable] British English informalSYHBH a man’s sexual organsExamples from the Corpus
tackle• The change also means McGlockton can play as a tackle again instead of moving outside, a spot where he felt uncomfortable.• Testaverde later scrambled for 12 yards, breaking tackles with Steve Young-like dexterity.• At least three critical tackles were missed last week.• Tuggle annually makes a ton of tackles.• He wasn't injured by the tackle, just ruined by running in unremitting heat.Origin tackle2 (1200-1300) Probably from Middle Low German takel “ship's equipment”, from taken “to seize” 