squiggle

play

verb squig·gle \ˈskwi-gəl\

Definition of squiggle

squiggled

;

squiggling

play \-g(ə-)liŋ\

intransitive verb
1 : squirm, wriggle squiggling in her seat
2 : to write or paint hastily : scribble
transitive verb
1 : scribble
2 : to form or cause to form in squiggles

Examples of squiggle in a Sentence

a pediatrician's waiting room full of squiggling toddlers
there are some illegible notes squiggled in the margins of the old book

Origin and Etymology of squiggle

blend of squirm and wriggle

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1816

See Words from the same year

squiggle

noun squig·gle

Definition of squiggle

: a short wavy twist or line : curlicue; especially : an illegible scrawl

squiggly

play \-g(ə-)lē\ adjective

See squiggle defined for English-language learners

See squiggle defined for kids

Examples of squiggle in a Sentence

His handwriting looks like a bunch of squiggles.

Recent Examples of squiggle from the Web

Men who do not fear a multicolored squiggle or a polka-dot pattern, rejoice.

— dayna evans, The Cut, "The Happiest Clothing Line on Earth Is Finally Doing Menswear," 20 July 2017
My Bowie model was one of the more subdued, a white background with black squiggles and a golden circle in the center, but there’s a rainbow of other models on Yeti’s website.

— the si staff, SI.com, "The Best Yoga Mats 2017," 29 June 2017
An engineer had recorded Emerson warming up, and the rest of the band had to convince him not to replace his squiggles with something more precise—more impressive.

— aaron gilbreath, Longreads, "Prog Rock: The Musical Genre That Won’t Die," 29 June 2017
Running southwest out of Nashville, the 444-mile Natchez Trace Parkway plows a narrow squiggle through a verdant forest and conjures up a sort of neo-Nürburgring.

— eric tingwall, Car and Driver, "2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio," 24 June 2017
The caps are also decorated with the signature Crayola squiggle.

— sophie hirsh, Allure, "Sally Hansen and Crayola Collaborated on a Colorful Nail Polish Line," 20 June 2017
Looking up the spelling of words in the dictionary Spellcheck is nearly as old as word processors, and many of us have grown up expecting Microsoft Word to underline our mistakes in red squiggles.

— kim komando, USA TODAY, "20 things we don’t do anymore because of technology," 5 May 2017
The resulting squiggles, lines, and loops suggest quickly sketched drawings of human characters.

— The New Yorker, "Lee Relvas," 28 Apr. 2017
If you are stumped on the significance of a circle or squiggle, Mary also acts as interpreter.

— andrea sachs, The Denver Post, "On a visit to Scottsdale, mixing modern living with the wild West," 25 Apr. 2017

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