tweak

1 of 2

verb

ˈtwēk 

tweaked; tweaking; tweaks

transitive verb

1

: to make usually small adjustments in or to

tweak the controls

especially : fine-tune

2

: to injure slightly

tweaked my knee

3

: to pinch (a person or a body part) lightly or playfully

4

: to pinch and pull with a sudden jerk and twist : twitch

tweaked a bud from the stem

5

a

: annoy, bother

tweaking the establishment

b

: to criticize especially in a sly or sharp manner

c

: to poke fun at

intransitive verb

1

: pull, pluck

2

: to make small adjustments

tweak

2 of 2

noun

plural tweaks

1

: a small change or adjustment

We made a few tweaks to the original recipe.

Jellyfish collects information about what's happening behind the scenes and rushes it to its corporate clients so they can make investments based on things like forthcoming regulations or tax code tweaks.

—Tim Murphy

They'd try making helpful tweaks to the way my chair faced the computer …

—Lucette Lagnado

2

: a sharp pinch or jerk

a tweak of the nose

Archie laughed, and Rose, seeing a merry blue eye winking at her from behind two brown hands, gave Charlie's ear a friendly tweak …

—Louisa May Alcott

3

: a slight injury causing pain

… it's worth remembering that Pryor is a more dangerous runner than passer, so even a slight tweak of the leg or ankle could be a significant blow to the offense at State College.

—Bob Hunter

Examples of tweak in a Sentence

Verb

We just wanted to tweak his original idea a bit.

He tweaked his ankle playing soccer.

My brother hates it when our grandmother tweaks his cheek.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

But the company regularly tweaks and refines the formula, introducing new lines, being careful not to stray far from the defining characteristics of the instruments that are beloved of generations of musicians, but offering new angles on a classic product. —New Atlas, 15 Nov. 2025

But at the same time, simply being aware of how colorectal cancer may show up and embracing a few lifestyle changes (like, yes, tweaking your diet) can go a long way toward prevention. —Korin Miller, SELF, 14 Nov. 2025

Noun

But after some tweaks, DJ Tori — name courtesy of Mottla — improved and premiered last year, spewing factoids about bands and records and spouting saucy banter. —David Browne, Rolling Stone, 14 Nov. 2025

This would not be a new phenomenon—Billboards’ digital sales have been a target for manipulation for several years now, forcing the company to make several tweaks to tamp down on gamesmanship. —Andrew R. Chow, Time, 14 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

probably alteration of Middle English twikken to pull sharply, from Old English twiccian to pluck — more at twitch entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

1601, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 4

Noun

1616, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for tweak

• beak
• beek
• bleak
• cheek
• chic
• clique
• creak
• creek
• eke
• freak
• geek
• greek

Kids Definition

tweak

verb

ˈtwēk 

1

: to pinch and pull with a sudden jerk and twist

2

: to make small adjustments in or to

tweak the controls

3

: to injure slightly

tweak noun