yoke
/jəʊk/ (bre, ipa) · [jˈok] /jəʊk/ (ame, ipa) · [jˈok] /ˈyōk How to pronounce yoke (audio)/ (ame, mw) · [jˈok] /joʊk/ (ame, ipa)
yoke — noun
- yokesingular
- yokesplural
1. a curved wooden bar fixed across two working animals so they can pull a cart or
a curved wooden bar fixed across two working animals so they can pull a cart or other heavy load together.
The farmer lifted the yoke onto the oxen before sunrise.
lift a yoke onto working animals
A cracked yoke made the cart shake on the muddy road.
Workers hung the yoke on a nail beside the stable door.
Without a yoke, the two bulls could not pull evenly.
用法筆記
This sense is used for the wooden bar itself, not for the two animals as a team. Distinguish from sense 6, which names the pair of animals joined for work.
常見錯誤
2. a force or tie that keeps people under control or makes life hard to bear.
a force or tie that keeps people under control or makes life hard to bear.
Many families wanted to throw off the yoke of foreign rule.
throw off the yoke of [power]
Debt became a yoke that kept the shop owner awake.
For years, fear was a yoke on the workers' daily lives.
She spoke about marriage as a yoke, not a partnership.
- freedom
emphasizes release from control or pressure
用法筆記
This figurative sense usually appears in writing about power, duty, or a relationship that feels oppressive. Distinguish from sense 1, which refers to the actual farm tool.
常見錯誤
3. the shaped upper section of a dress, skirt, or similar garment that supports the
the shaped upper section of a dress, skirt, or similar garment that supports the fuller cloth below it.
The dress has a blue yoke above the loose white skirt.
yoke as the fitted top section of clothing
Emma sewed lace along the yoke of the nightgown.
The tailor cut a round yoke for the child's party dress.
A dark yoke gave the plain blouse a sharper shape.
用法筆記
This sense belongs to sewing and clothing design. It often refers to the fitted part near the shoulders, but some garments also have a yoke at the waist or hips.
4. an informal word for an object when you cannot recall or do not know its real na
an informal word for an object when you cannot recall or do not know its real name.
Pass me that plastic yoke beside the sink, please.
informal substitute for an unknown object name
Ravi fixed the yoke under the chair without knowing its real name.
What is that yoke on the back of the bike?
The box came with a small metal yoke for the wall.
- thing
the most general everyday placeholder
- thingamajig
more playful and longer than the short informal 'yoke'
- widget
often used jokingly for a small device or unnamed part
用法筆記
Use this only in informal speech when the exact object name is missing or forgotten. It is not the same as the literal farm or clothing senses above.
常見錯誤
5. a wooden carrying frame worn across the shoulders with a balanced load hanging f
a wooden carrying frame worn across the shoulders with a balanced load hanging from each side.
The porter balanced two water buckets on a wooden yoke.
carry two balanced loads on a yoke
Grandfather carried rice seedlings home with a yoke.
The yoke dug into Lin's shoulders on the long climb.
At the museum, visitors tried lifting a bamboo yoke.
- shoulder pole
describes the same carrying idea in a more transparent way
- carrying pole
general term that does not always imply the shaped shoulder fit
用法筆記
This is a carrying tool for a person, not the bar used on two animals in sense 1. It is especially associated with buckets or baskets hanging from both ends.
6. two work animals treated as one team because they are harnessed side by side.
two work animals treated as one team because they are harnessed side by side.
One yoke of oxen pulled the stones up the hill.
one yoke of oxen = one working pair
The farmer bought another yoke of bulls for spring work.
A yoke of oxen hauled the wagon through the wet field.
Each yoke of oxen rested after pulling three logs.
用法筆記
This sense counts the animals as a unit. Distinguish from sense 1, which refers to the wooden bar used to join them.
yoke — verb
- yokepresent simple I / you / we / they
- yokes3rd person singular
- yoking-ing form
- yokedpast simple
1. to fasten working animals together with a wooden bar so they can pull something
to fasten working animals together with a wooden bar so they can pull something as a pair.
Before noon, the men yoked the oxen to the wagon.
yoke + animals + to [vehicle]
They yoked the two mules together for the steep climb.
yoke two animals together
A farmhand yoked the cattle and checked the straps.
The boys learned how to yoke buffalo for field work.
- unharness
removes the working gear after use
文法句型
yoke + animals + to [vehicle/load]
yoke + two animals together
用法筆記
This verb is mostly used in farming or historical contexts. It normally takes the animals as the object, and it often adds the load or vehicle after 'to'.
常見錯誤
2. to link people, ideas, or things closely together, often so they must act as one
to link people, ideas, or things closely together, often so they must act as one.
The plan yokes higher wages to longer training hours.
yoke A to B
The novel yokes family history with political change.
yoke A with B
Leila refused to be yoked to a job she hated.
Cheap fame is often yoked with shallow online praise.
文法句型
yoke + noun + to + noun
yoke + noun + with + noun
be yoked to + noun
用法筆記
This figurative sense often appears in writing about politics, ideas, or relationships that become tightly connected. In passive form, it can suggest an unwanted tie or obligation.