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Writhe wound its way to us from the Old English verb wrīthan, meaning “to twist,” and that ancestral meaning lives on in the word’s current uses, most of which have to do with twists of one kind or another. Among the oldest of these uses is the meaning “to twist into coils or folds,” but in modern use writhing is more often about the physical contortions of one suffering from debilitating pain or attempting to remove oneself from a tight grasp (as, say, a snake from a hawk’s talons). The word is also not infrequently applied to the twisting bodies of dancers. The closest relation of writhe in modern English lacks any of the painful connotations often present in writhe: wreath comes from Old English writha, which shares an ancestor with wrīthan.
Examples of writhe in a Sentence
Ta-Nehisi Coates, Vanity Fair, 15 June 2026
And Wembanyama got away with another controversial non-call, this time not giving Jalen Brunson room to land on a 3-pointer, which left the Knicks star writhing in pain.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 14 June 2026
Louis is also left writhing in pain after intentionally walking outside during the day.
—Tiffany Kelly, Entertainment Weekly, 3 June 2026
Reid writhes in front of Zaman, sticking out his tongue in one take, running his hand down his body in another, all while a gigantic technocrane zooms overhead.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 2 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for writhe
Cite this Entry
“Writhe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/writhe. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.
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