mangler

Mangler is a term used for an agent—person or machine—that mangles something, i.e., causes severe deformation, damage, or alteration. The precise meaning varies by domain, but the core sense is the act of injuring, deforming, or processing something through force or obfuscation.

In mechanical and industrial contexts, a mangler is a device or machine designed to apply force to materials as part of a processing step. Such equipment may press, crush, squeeze, or shear materials to change their shape, reduce moisture, or prepare them for the next stage of production. In textiles and laundry, equipment termed a mangler or mangle is used to flatten and remove water from fabrics, while other mangling machines appear in paper, wood, or recycling operations. The specific design and function depend on the material and industry.

In computing, name mangling is a technique used by compilers and linkers to encode additional information—such as function signatures or namespaces—into symbol names. A tool, script, or compiler component that performs this encoding is colloquially called a mangler.

As a general noun, mangler refers to a person or thing that mangles, injuring or deforming something through carelessness, accident, or intent. The term is more common in informal language than in technical specifications, and its exact connotations depend on context.

In popular culture, "The Mangler" is the title of Stephen King’s 1972 short story and its film adaptation, which feature a malevolent machine that mangles people.