wriggled; wriggling
ˈri-g(ə-)liŋ 
1
: to move the body or a bodily part to and fro with short writhing motions like a worm : squirm
2
: to move or advance by twisting and turning
3
: to extricate or insinuate oneself or reach a goal as if by wriggling
1
: to cause to move in short quick contortions
2
: to introduce, insinuate, or bring into a state or place by or as if by wriggling
1
: a short or quick writhing motion or contortion
2
: a formation or marking of sinuous design
Synonyms
Examples of wriggle in a Sentence
Verb
The children wriggled and squirmed in their chairs.
She managed to wriggle free of her ropes.
They wriggled out of their wet clothes.
I had trouble getting the wriggling fish off my hook.
The snake wriggled across the path and went underneath a bush.
He was able to wriggle through the narrow opening.
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Recent Examples on the Web
Lauren Leffer, Scientific American, 21 Aug. 2023
Meanwhile, the child being held by the first man can be seen wriggling around in his arms.
—Abigail Adams, Peoplemag, 10 Aug. 2023
These diminutive crustaceans can lie dormant for years until a dose of rain sends them wriggling to the surface, which is why seagulls fly inland from the coast to the high deserts to gorge on them.
—Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 25 July 2023
Mostly, the Roys wriggle out without too much trouble.
—Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 23 Mar. 2023
Millennia later, the worms, thawed out of the ice, would wriggle again, and demonstrate to scientists that life could be paused — almost indefinitely.
—Orlando Mayorquin, New York Times, 29 July 2023
Kelly’s beloved dog, an elderly, Pomeranian-long haired Chihuahua mix named Annie Oakley, bounded down the carpeted staircase and wriggled across the linoleum kitchen floor, wagging her tail for attention.
—Lea Skene, Anchorage Daily News, 12 June 2023
The worms then start wriggling around, eating bacteria in a lab dish and reproducing.
—Carolyn Y. Johnson, Anchorage Daily News, 27 July 2023
For him, the sport is organized around the solitary rite of catching a wriggling trout and tossing the fish back into the water.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 9 June 2023
Anna Funk, Discover Magazine, 15 Apr. 2019
While larvae wriggle in their hexagonal cells, Varroa mites are busy sucking their hemolyph, or blood, for sustenance.
—Carl Engelking, Discover Magazine, 5 June 2015
Toward the end of Wednesday’s semifinal, Morocco was the likelier team to score, until Mbappé got into his favorite wriggle zone, on the edge of the penalty area, and quick-stepped his way through a crowd of defenders.
—Sam Knight, The New Yorker, 17 Dec. 2022
There’s no teen watching for wriggle-through-able holes in the parental-authority net.
—Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 2 Dec. 2022
But the modern members of the animal lineage—millions and millions of species of them that flit and fly and sprint and swim and wriggle and crawl—can all trace their origins to a singular uni-to-multi switch.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 28 Sep. 2022
The team chose a peekytoe crab shape simply for the fun of watching a minuscule robot wriggle in a crab-like fashion, but their three-dimensional printing technique could be used to mimic any animal or shape, the researchers say.
—Manasee Wagh, Popular Mechanics, 26 May 2022
Just under your skin lie whole aqueous worlds, where trillions of cells spark and beat and wriggle and secrete, doing all the complicated tasks of keeping you alive.
—Megan Molteni, STAT, 14 May 2022
At the Las Vegas Justice Court, the largest of some 40 courts hearing eviction cases in Nevada, Hearing Master David F. Brown did not allow for much wriggle room.
—New York Times, 11 Aug. 2021
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Verb
When a nematode wriggles around a petri dish, what’s going on inside a tiny roundworm’s even tinier brain?
—Lauren Leffer, Scientific American, 21 Aug. 2023
Meanwhile, the child being held by the first man can be seen wriggling around in his arms.
—Abigail Adams, Peoplemag, 10 Aug. 2023
These diminutive crustaceans can lie dormant for years until a dose of rain sends them wriggling to the surface, which is why seagulls fly inland from the coast to the high deserts to gorge on them.
—Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 25 July 2023
Mostly, the Roys wriggle out without too much trouble.
—Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 23 Mar. 2023
Millennia later, the worms, thawed out of the ice, would wriggle again, and demonstrate to scientists that life could be paused — almost indefinitely.
—Orlando Mayorquin, New York Times, 29 July 2023
Kelly’s beloved dog, an elderly, Pomeranian-long haired Chihuahua mix named Annie Oakley, bounded down the carpeted staircase and wriggled across the linoleum kitchen floor, wagging her tail for attention.
—Lea Skene, Anchorage Daily News, 12 June 2023
The worms then start wriggling around, eating bacteria in a lab dish and reproducing.
—Carolyn Y. Johnson, Anchorage Daily News, 27 July 2023
For him, the sport is organized around the solitary rite of catching a wriggling trout and tossing the fish back into the water.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 9 June 2023
Noun
Translucent sperm wriggle slowly across a sepia-toned laptop screen.
—Anna Funk, Discover Magazine, 15 Apr. 2019
While larvae wriggle in their hexagonal cells, Varroa mites are busy sucking their hemolyph, or blood, for sustenance.
—Carl Engelking, Discover Magazine, 5 June 2015
Toward the end of Wednesday’s semifinal, Morocco was the likelier team to score, until Mbappé got into his favorite wriggle zone, on the edge of the penalty area, and quick-stepped his way through a crowd of defenders.
—Sam Knight, The New Yorker, 17 Dec. 2022
There’s no teen watching for wriggle-through-able holes in the parental-authority net.
—Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 2 Dec. 2022
But the modern members of the animal lineage—millions and millions of species of them that flit and fly and sprint and swim and wriggle and crawl—can all trace their origins to a singular uni-to-multi switch.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 28 Sep. 2022
The team chose a peekytoe crab shape simply for the fun of watching a minuscule robot wriggle in a crab-like fashion, but their three-dimensional printing technique could be used to mimic any animal or shape, the researchers say.
—Manasee Wagh, Popular Mechanics, 26 May 2022
Just under your skin lie whole aqueous worlds, where trillions of cells spark and beat and wriggle and secrete, doing all the complicated tasks of keeping you alive.
—Megan Molteni, STAT, 14 May 2022
At the Las Vegas Justice Court, the largest of some 40 courts hearing eviction cases in Nevada, Hearing Master David F. Brown did not allow for much wriggle room.
—New York Times, 11 Aug. 2021
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wriggle.' 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
Middle English, from or akin to Middle Low German wriggeln to wriggle; akin to Old English wrigian to turn — more at wry
First Known Use
Verb
15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1
Noun
1709, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of wriggle was
in the 15th century
Phrases Containing wriggle
Dictionary Entries Near wriggle
Cite this Entry
“Wriggle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wriggle. Accessed 22 Sep. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
wriggle
2 of 2 noun1
: a short or quick twisting motion
2
: a formation or marking having a winding or twisting course or appearance
More from Merriam-Webster on wriggle
Nglish: Translation of wriggle for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of wriggle for Arabic Speakers
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