as in twitched
to make jerky or restless movements
small children are likely to fidget in church
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Recent Examples of fidgeted
Children fidgeted in the relentless August heat.
—
Jacqui Gifford, Travel + Leisure, 29 Sep. 2025
Jacqui Gifford, Travel + Leisure, 29 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fidgeted
Verb
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Through the scope, a polar bear twitched on the ice, 25 yards in front of me.—
Scott Haugen,
Outdoor Life,
4 Feb. 2026
-
Baby Briana’s arms twitched and legs flopped against cold concrete.—
Jayme Fraser,
USA Today,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Carl squirmed away from some of his earlier remarks minimizing the Holocaust but stood by his views on anti-white persecution and the Great Replacement.—
Andreas Kluth,
Mercury News,
28 Feb. 2026
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Juana Rodriguez was bound for hours as her 3-year old son cried and squirmed, according to the ACLU lawsuit that was filed on behalf of three Latino families.—
Michael Kaplan,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Aisha jerked and opened her eyes.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2026
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The two stood nose-to-nose on the field when the Steelers player grabbed onto Chase’s facemask, jerked his head and appeared to punch him.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
16 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Martha Stewart hosted a luncheon at Joe’s Stone Crab, Italian celebrity butcher Dario Cecchini tossed slabs of beef into an eager dinner crowd, and Ray reprised her Burger Bash, where everything from Kool-Aid pickles to foie gras adorned smashed wagyu patties on potato buns.—
J.M. Hirsch,
The Orlando Sentinel,
25 Feb. 2026
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As Sacramento State prepares to blitz onto a bigger stage, a flag has already been tossed onto the field.—
Chris Biderman,
Sacbee.com,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But what does some scientist know about eating fruit, of all things, when your hamstring feels like it’s being fiddled by Satan?—
Dan England,
Outside,
5 Feb. 2026
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As Rossini stowed her purse in a tiny back office, a manager named Katie Atlas was onboarding a new employee, a young woman who fiddled nervously with her necklace.—
Hannah Goldfield,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Poking at the dirt outside of the home with a sharp metal rod soldered to a handle, Tello wiggled the rod around, pulled it out, and smelled it.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
27 Feb. 2026
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Pierce wiggled, jumped, twisted, pulled, huffed and puffed his way out of that straitjacket, taking a little bow at the end.—
Lisa Gutierrez,
Kansas City Star,
25 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fidgeted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fidgeted. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.
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