SQUIRMED Synonyms: 29 Similar and Opposite Words

squirmed

verb

past tense of squirm

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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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of squirmed Belloumi’s 64th-minute strike with his left foot broke the deadlock in the second game of the two-leg affair and Gelhardt made sure with a low shot that squirmed past the Millwall goalkeeper. — ABC News, 11 May 2026 His Japanese guest, usually a paragon of diplomatic cool, visibly squirmed. — Andreas Kluth, Twin Cities, 14 Apr. 2026 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 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 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

Recent Examples of Synonyms for squirmed

Verb

One woman ordered some home furniture while two children fidgeted nearby.

— David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 23 Mar. 2026
Between each dance was an excruciating silence during which network-TV producers monitored and reset their equipment while the men fidgeted onstage like excitable children.

— Rebecca Jennings, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2026

Definition of fidgeted

Verb

Many a club’s board would have twitched in the face of the bare data, but the chain of command above Arteta stayed the course, and the FOMO is so high that tickets for Palace away this weekend are going for £45,000 ($60,000) on resale sites.

— Phil Hay, New York Times, 21 May 2026
My jaw twitched uncontrollably.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 May 2026

Definition of twitched

Verb

But in 1933, within a matter of days, they were jerked back into reality.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026
Once the squid gather near the surface, lines fitted with bait are lowered into the water and rapidly jerked up and down to imitate small prey such as shrimp, triggering strikes before the catch is reeled aboard.

— Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 20 June 2026

Definition of jerked

Verb

In his second start since returning from the 15-day Injured List, Tampa Bay’s Shane McClanahan tossed five shutout innings and gave up four hits.

— Harvey Valentine, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Aug. 2026
Most injuries occurred as residents were tossed from beds or stumbled in the dark; trains and airport links were briefly disrupted, a Tokyo water main burst, and hundreds lost power.

— Mari Yamaguchi, Los Angeles Times, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of tossed

Verb

Hawaii put runners on base in each of the first four innings, but Kirk wiggled out of it until the fifth when Waiki Doctolero blasted a three-run home run to get Hawaii back in the game.

— Dennis Pope, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Aug. 2026
Punk eventually tried to go for the GTS, but Rhodes wiggled out and caught Punk in a headlock.

— Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026

Definition of wiggled

Verb

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
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

Definition of fiddled

Verb

Lesnar smiled as Femi writhed in pain from the multiple finishing moves.

— Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 19 May 2026
While family members and peers in Yuba City waited for more information, Burris writhed deeper into the bus, and responders in Martinez formulated a plan to rescue the people left inside.

— Jake Goodrick, Sacbee.com, 9 May 2026

Definition of writhed

Verb

After a fan interfered with the ball, resulting in an automatic out, Bericoto turned away to avoid being hit in the face but twisted his knee.

— Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 25 Aug. 2026
Auf der Maur, in white, is twisted away from the audience, staring intently at the lens.

— Kelefa Sanneh, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2026

Definition of twisted

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squirm

squirmed

squirming

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“Squirmed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/squirmed. Accessed 29 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of squirmed

verb

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