as in fidgeted
to make jerky or restless movements
the toddler squirmed the whole time we were in the waiting room
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Recent Examples of squirmed
The open section of their session lasted for 15 minutes — and Howe will have squirmed through every second — but there were laughs amid the stretches and shuttle runs.
—
George Caulkin, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
George Caulkin, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for squirmed
Verb
-
Children fidgeted in the relentless August heat.—
Jacqui Gifford,
Travel + Leisure,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
His eyes twitched in rapid blinks, his lips disappeared as if cold fury were coursing through his body.—
George Packer,
The Atlantic,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Her hand twitched from the heat.—
Zuzana Říhová,
Literary Hub,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Allen, who is 6 foot 5 and 237 pounds, jerked his head back in an effort to draw a roughing penalty on Bolton.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Travis jerked open the door and slid on his butt down a wing that was on fire.—
Gillian Telling,
PEOPLE,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Marshall tossed an overhead pass to Flagg, who slammed in a dunk.—
Christian Clark,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Check in on your hair tools before the year end to see what’s still in good shape and what needs to be tossed.—
Patricia Shannon,
Southern Living,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
The model comically wiggled her tongue back and forth as the artist worked his magic.—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Nov. 2025
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One 14 month old tester happily clapped and wiggled along to the songs—a feature that can be adjusted as needed.—
Pamela Brill,
Parents,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
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
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Communities across the globe probably independently fiddled their way towards the invention of proto lip balms over and over.—
Mark Hay,
Popular Science,
13 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Skattebo writhed in pain as the training staff came out to attend to him.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
26 Oct. 2025
-
Lorde writhed and danced on the b-stage and then launched into her own verse, recorded for the song’s viral remix during the brat-green summer of 2024.—
Rachel Scharf,
Billboard,
19 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Others said preachers twisted scripture to silence them.—
Mike Hixenbaugh,
NBC news,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Late in the second half against the Cowboys, Surtain tried to wrap up Pickens and twisted 360 degrees while trying to bring the wideout down around his upper body.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
27 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Squirmed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/squirmed. Accessed 13 Nov. 2025.
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