cringe

verb \ ˈkrinj \

Definition of cringe

cringed; cringing

intransitive verb

1 :to draw in or contract one's muscles involuntarily (as from cold or pain)

… we cringe under the blasting wind …
—Charles S. Houston

2 :to shrink in fear or servility

The terrified animal cringed in the corner.

3 :to behave in an excessively humble or servile way

beggars cringing to tourists for money

4 :to recoil in distaste

Americans cringed … at the use of a term now regarded as a slur
—William Safire

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cringer

noun

See cringe defined for English-language learners

See cringe defined for kids

Examples of cringe in a Sentence

Many English teachers cringe when their students use the word “ain't.”
I always cringe when I hear that song.
Just the thought of eating broccoli makes me cringe.
The dog cringed at the noise.

Recent Examples of cringe from the Web

The Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, but some of us cringed at seeing what had become of Rory’s once-promising journalism career.

— ellen gray, Philly.com, "From 'Lou Grant' to 'The Bold Type': What TV gets right, and not so right, about journalism," 6 July 2017
One call that makes me cringe a bit is the high-pitched, clear whistle or dry rattling call of arriving cowbirds to my neighborhood.

— taylor piephoff, charlotteobserver, "Cowbirds make other species raise their chicks, neglecting their own," 30 June 2017
Phillies fans most likely weren’t cringing, but rather yelling when Odubel Herrera plowed through Juan Samuel’s stop sign at third base and was thrown out handily at home plate in a tie game in the ninth inning.

— connor grossman, SI.com, "Starting Nine: Two lost no-hit bids end in losses, plus a Joey Gallo inside-the-parker," 22 June 2017
The problem is that Jackson has created a culture where free agents cringe at the thought of joining on.

— steve popper, USA TODAY, "Phil Jackson has Knicks stumbling into Draft Night," 22 June 2017
Today, many people cringe at the trolling culture of comment threads or social media.

— chris stokel-walker, Ars Technica, "More than a decade later, how do original YouTube stars feel about the site?," 11 June 2017
San Diego’s current building boom is producing dozens of new buildings and landscapes — some noteworthy, some cringe worthy.

— roger showley, sandiegouniontribune.com, "San Diego's best, worst buildings: Orchids & Onions nominations open thru July," 7 June 2017
At the same time, there are Trump devotees who believe Fox News hasn’t gone far enough, and who cringe every time Shep Smith or Bret Baier utter a critical word about him.

— vanityfair.com, VanityFair.com, "With Ailes Gone and Megyn Kelly Reborn, a Shell-Shocked Fox News Looks Like an Episode of The Leftovers," 6 June 2017
Dianne DePasquale-Hagerty, CEO of the non-profit agency that supplies housing and other supports for people who have developmental and physical disabilities, cringed inwardly.

— ann norman, cleveland.com, "Medina Creative Housing invites community to 25th birthday celebration," 1 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'cringe.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of cringe

Middle English crengen; akin to Old English cringan to yield, Middle High German krank weak

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

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cringe Synonyms

Synonyms

blench, flinch, quail, recoil, shrink, squinch, wince

Related Words

blanch, pale, whiten; quake, quiver, shake, shudder, tremble; crouch; jerk, start, twitch; recede, retire, retreat, withdraw; falter, hesitate, reel, waver

Near Antonyms

advance, approach, near; beard, challenge, confront, defy, face

Synonym Discussion of cringe

fawn, toady, truckle, cringe, cower mean to behave abjectly before a superior. fawn implies seeking favor by servile flattery or exaggerated attention.

- waiters fawning over a celebrity

toady suggests the attempt to ingratiate oneself by an abjectly menial or subservient attitude.

- toadying to his boss

truckle implies the subordination of oneself and one's desires or judgment to those of a superior.

- truckling to a powerful lobbyist

cringe suggests a bowing or shrinking in fear or servility.

- a cringing sycophant

cower suggests a display of abject fear in the company of threatening or domineering people.

- cowering before a bully

cringe

noun

Definition of cringe

:a cringing act; specifically :a servile bow

Recent Examples of cringe from the Web

Crowds in recent years have been almost cringe-worthy, although the move to the Alaska Airlines Center in 2014 brought new energy, if not more fans.

— beth bragg, Alaska Dispatch News, "For 40 years, Shootout showed Alaska what big-time college basketball looks like," 25 Aug. 2017
But the bit is classic Fey in another way, too: Its humor is also punctuated with moments of cringe-worthiness—about race, in particular.

— megan garber, The Atlantic, "'Let Us Eat Cake': The Tina Fey Effect in 2017," 18 Aug. 2017
To the power brokers back in Washington—the policymakers and think-tankers who sweat the details that Trump tramples—the performance was cringe-inducing, the commander in chief laying waste to 70 years of postwar American leadership.

— jason zengerle, GQ, "What If Mike Pence Becomes President?," 8 Aug. 2017
Their bizarre banter carries on for a few more cringe-worthy seconds.

— christopher rosa, Glamour, "Watch Britney Spears Reject 'Bachelorette' Contestant DeMario Jackson's Pick-Up Attempt in This 2008 Video," 24 July 2017
Their half-sister, a trust-fund beneficiary, is getting married in London, and her wedding becomes the setting for all kinds of cringe-worthy familial fireworks.

— john wilkens, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Novelist to discuss 'The People We Hate at the Wedding'," 2 July 2017
Ruby Hess submitted a recipe for chocolate mayonnaise cake and despite the cringe-worthy name, the cake has historical significance.

— dawn mitchell, Indianapolis Star, "Cooking before Pinterest? Indy used "church-lady" cookbooks," 25 June 2017
And is there any better cringe comedy than the mixed signals of two people on a first date?

— jason zinoman, New York Times, "She Swipes Right on Tinder, and Everyone’s In on the Joke," 21 June 2017
Miami U.S. Senator Marco Rubio has been getting trolled on social media after a cringe-worthy photo of his awkward attempt to embrace the much taller Ivanka Trump popped up on political websites.

— by jose lambiet, miamiherald, "Marco Rubio finds out the hard way: It takes two to hug," 20 June 2017

Origin and Etymology of cringe

see ¹cringe

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1597

See Words from the same year

CRINGE Defined for English Language Learners

cringe

verb

Definition of cringe for English Language Learners

: to feel disgust or embarrassment and often to show this feeling by a movement of your face or body
: to make a sudden movement from fear of being hit or hurt