writhe

verb \ ˈrīt͟h \

|Updated on: 17 Jul 2018

Examples: writhe in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of writhe

writhed; writhing

transitive verb

1 a : to twist into coils or folds

b : to twist so as to distort : wrench

c : to twist (the body or a bodily part) in pain

2 : intertwine

intransitive verb

1 : to move or proceed with twists and turns

writhed to the music

2 : to twist from or as if from pain or struggling

3 : to suffer keenly

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writhe

noun

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Examples of writhe in a Sentence

She lay on the floor, writhing in pain.
a nest of writhing snakes

Recent Examples of writhe from the Web

Williams can be seen writhing in pain before he is arrested.

— erin donaghue, CBS News, ""Shockingly violent": Man tased in back while sitting on curb sues officer, city," 5 July 2018
The only bummer about his performance was his flopping and writhing around the ground.

— ann killion, SFChronicle.com, "World Cup double-bill: Mexico ousted by Brazil, but the best game came later," 2 July 2018
According to a story published in the following day's Daily States, the kids were writhing in front of their home when their mother called for a doctor.

— james karst, NOLA.com, "These were the worst snowballs of all time," 10 May 2017
But through it all, human desire is made sumptuously absurd, especially by Carrie Compere as Sofia and J. Daughtry as Harpo, lovers who writhe in pain at the thought of keeping their hands off each other.

— lily janiak, San Francisco Chronicle, "A rainbow of shades in the voices of SHN’s ‘The Color Purple’," 3 May 2018
The nude girls writhed on the bed, intertwining and unwinding.

— susannah breslin, The Atlantic, "Porn’s Uncanny Valley," 1 June 2018
The Portugal defender writhed in pain, prompting his teammates to come rushing in to petition to referee Horacio Elizondo, under whose nose the whole thing had just happened.

— SI.com, "World Cup Countdown: 3 Weeks to Go - Rooney, Ronaldo and the English Need for a Scapegoat in 2006," 1 June 2018
Midway through the first quarter, with Klay Thompson about to receive a pass, Smith slipped (on an apparent wet spot) and crashed awkwardly into Thompson, sending him writhing to the floor in pain.

— bruce jenkins, SFChronicle.com, "Game 1 an overtime thriller for Warriors," 31 May 2018
The 18-second video shows a writhing black snake, clinging to the door handle and appearing to be in no hurry to move.

— mark price, charlotteobserver, "Slithering snake wraps itself over door handle, blocks NASCAR team from headquarters," 24 May 2018

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

Did You Know?

Writhe wound its way to English from the Old English verb wrīthan ("to twist") and is akin to the Old English verb wrigian ("to turn or go"). Wrigian gave us our words wriggle, awry, and wry. When something wriggles it twists from side to side with quick movements, like an earthworm. When something goes awry, its twists or winds off course, or toward catastrophe. Wry can mean "bent or twisted" but now usually implies clever, ironic humor. Nowadays, writhe often suggests the physical contortions one makes when enduring crippling pain or when trying to extract oneself from a tight grasp (as an animal from a predator's claws). Alternatively, it can imply an emotionally wrenching feeling (as of grief or fear) from which one seeks relief.