cringed; cringing
1
: to recoil in distaste
Americans cringed … at the use of a term now regarded as a slur—
William Safire
William Safire2
: 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 draw in or contract one's muscles involuntarily (as from cold or pain)
… we cringe under the blasting wind …—Charles S. Houston
Charles S. Houston
cringer
noun
slang
: so embarrassing, awkward, etc. as to cause one to cringe : cringeworthy
a cringe moment
cringe comedy [=comedy involving jokes that make people uncomfortable]
It's hard to find a movie from the early 2000s that isn't a little cringe.—theringer.com
theringer.com
Synonyms
Examples of cringe in a Sentence
Verb
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 on the WebAmanda Hoover, WIRED, 29 Nov. 2023
Some academics cringed at his departure from traditional approaches.
—Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 25 Nov. 2023
The acquisition announcement set off privacy alarms everywhere, and people cringed at the idea of Amazon gaining access to maps of millions of homes.
—Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 3 Nov. 2023
Reflecting on her older sister, Roni cringed slightly.
—Ruth Margalit, The New Yorker, 11 Nov. 2023
On Thursday's episode of Live with Hoda & Jenna, Bush Hager, 41, and co-host Hoda Kotb, 59, watch a clip of Jimmy Kimmel, 55, and his wife kissing as his kids cringe at the sight.
—Hannah Sacks, Peoplemag, 26 Oct. 2023
The result was an awkward Frankenstein of tone and rhythm that could make the corniest dad cringe.
—Caleb Madison, The Atlantic, 28 Oct. 2023
And those weren’t the only comments that made some of his associates cringe.
—Kim Masters, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Oct. 2023
Some things, of course, will not change, and this year’s intro is only an iota less cringe than the Billy Ray Cyrus tribute that opened 2021.
—James Hansen, Bon Appétit, 28 Sep. 2023
Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2023
This is the ultimate disappointment of writer-director Jennifer Cram’s cringe comedy.
—Courtney Howard, Variety, 18 Oct. 2023
Watching sports media maniacally try to capitalize on the cultural power of Taylor Swift and her female fanbase is the definition of cringe.
—Stephanie McNeal, Glamour, 6 Oct. 2023
In 2020, the atmosphere worsened when former host Sandi Toksvig’s brusque warmth was replaced by the cringe (and extremely dubious) comedian Matt Lucas.
—James Hansen, Bon Appétit, 28 Sep. 2023
Instead, in true millennial cringe fashion, Ballinger delivered her message through a 10-minute YouTube ukulele song, leaving behind probably the only time a notes app apology would have been preferable.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 28 June 2023
Over the past 20 years, American culture has been gorging itself nearly to death on cringe comedy.
—Sam Anderson, New York Times, 3 June 2023
The series is all cliché, followed by painful cringe and then rounded out by dumbfounded confusion.
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 26 May 2023
While the cringe parts are unfortunately inescapable, the movie still holds its own in certain respects.
—Mekita Rivas, refinery29.com, 15 Aug. 2023
Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 10 Nov. 2023
Was Timberlake’s cultural stock — already wobbling at dangerously cringe levels in recent years — about to take another hit?
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 13 Sep. 2023
In fact, some of it was pretty cringe and on the nose and reminded me of being a 13-year-old discovering Tumblr for the first time.
—Riann Phillip, Vogue, 26 July 2023
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Verb
To some, its dominance is cringe (or a FOMO moment for non-Spotify users).
—Amanda Hoover, WIRED, 29 Nov. 2023
Some academics cringed at his departure from traditional approaches.
—Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 25 Nov. 2023
The acquisition announcement set off privacy alarms everywhere, and people cringed at the idea of Amazon gaining access to maps of millions of homes.
—Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 3 Nov. 2023
Reflecting on her older sister, Roni cringed slightly.
—Ruth Margalit, The New Yorker, 11 Nov. 2023
On Thursday's episode of Live with Hoda & Jenna, Bush Hager, 41, and co-host Hoda Kotb, 59, watch a clip of Jimmy Kimmel, 55, and his wife kissing as his kids cringe at the sight.
—Hannah Sacks, Peoplemag, 26 Oct. 2023
The result was an awkward Frankenstein of tone and rhythm that could make the corniest dad cringe.
—Caleb Madison, The Atlantic, 28 Oct. 2023
And those weren’t the only comments that made some of his associates cringe.
—Kim Masters, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Oct. 2023
Some things, of course, will not change, and this year’s intro is only an iota less cringe than the Billy Ray Cyrus tribute that opened 2021.
—James Hansen, Bon Appétit, 28 Sep. 2023
Noun
For a comedy of its era, the film is remarkably free of cringe.
—Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2023
This is the ultimate disappointment of writer-director Jennifer Cram’s cringe comedy.
—Courtney Howard, Variety, 18 Oct. 2023
Watching sports media maniacally try to capitalize on the cultural power of Taylor Swift and her female fanbase is the definition of cringe.
—Stephanie McNeal, Glamour, 6 Oct. 2023
In 2020, the atmosphere worsened when former host Sandi Toksvig’s brusque warmth was replaced by the cringe (and extremely dubious) comedian Matt Lucas.
—James Hansen, Bon Appétit, 28 Sep. 2023
Instead, in true millennial cringe fashion, Ballinger delivered her message through a 10-minute YouTube ukulele song, leaving behind probably the only time a notes app apology would have been preferable.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 28 June 2023
Over the past 20 years, American culture has been gorging itself nearly to death on cringe comedy.
—Sam Anderson, New York Times, 3 June 2023
The series is all cliché, followed by painful cringe and then rounded out by dumbfounded confusion.
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 26 May 2023
While the cringe parts are unfortunately inescapable, the movie still holds its own in certain respects.
—Mekita Rivas, refinery29.com, 15 Aug. 2023
Adjective
The Curse, a new series premiering this weekend on both Showtime and Paramount+ with Showtime, is an epic masterpiece of cringe comedy — 10 weekly episodes of engulfing discomfort, pain and despair.
—Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 10 Nov. 2023
Was Timberlake’s cultural stock — already wobbling at dangerously cringe levels in recent years — about to take another hit?
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 13 Sep. 2023
In fact, some of it was pretty cringe and on the nose and reminded me of being a 13-year-old discovering Tumblr for the first time.
—Riann Phillip, Vogue, 26 July 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cringe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb and Noun
Middle English crengen; akin to Old English cringan to yield, Middle High German krank weak
First Known Use
Verb
13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4
Noun
1597, in the meaning defined above
Adjective
1983, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of cringe was
in the 13th century
Phrases Containing cringe
Articles Related to cringe
Dictionary Entries Near cringe
Cite this Entry
“Cringe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cringe. Accessed 4 Dec. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
cringe
verbˈkrinj
cringed; cringing
ˈkrin-jiŋ
1
: to shrink in fear or distaste : cower
cringed at the sight of blood
2
: to behave in a too humble or cowardly way
cringer
noun
More from Merriam-Webster on cringe
Nglish: Translation of cringe for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of cringe for Arabic Speakers
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