Past tense of collar, meaning to catch, seize, or apprehend someone, often by grabbing them by the collar. To confront or detain someone, typically in an authoritative manner.
From 'collar' (from Old French coler, from Latin collare meaning neck band) used as a verb meaning to seize by the collar. The figurative sense of catching or apprehending someone developed in the 18th century from the literal action of grabbing someone's collar to stop or control them.
The transition from 'collar' as clothing to 'collared' as capture reflects how fashion became a handle for authority - literally! Police and parents alike would grab collars to control someone, making the clothing item a metaphor for constraint and the action a symbol of being caught or confronted.
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