as in wiggly
making jerky or restless movements
a squirmy baby
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Recent Examples of squirmy
With that disclosure out in the open, the rest of the squirmy attendees subtly sank deeper into their seats, accepting Steinem’s orbit as a safe space.
—
Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 22 Apr. 2026
One of them is a squirmy, intensely relatable dark comedy about the escalating horrors of planning a wedding.
—Hannah Jocelyn, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
Conductors often fetishize the opening bars of this opera, their squirmy alternation of silence and piquant dissonance.
—Justin Davidson, Vulture, 11 Mar. 2026
Adding to the action is a colorful, squirmy worm that will get kids laughing and moving.
—Pamela Brill, Parents, 2 Oct. 2025
Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 22 Apr. 2026
One of them is a squirmy, intensely relatable dark comedy about the escalating horrors of planning a wedding.
—Hannah Jocelyn, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
Conductors often fetishize the opening bars of this opera, their squirmy alternation of silence and piquant dissonance.
—Justin Davidson, Vulture, 11 Mar. 2026
Adding to the action is a colorful, squirmy worm that will get kids laughing and moving.
—Pamela Brill, Parents, 2 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for squirmy
Adjective
-
At the edges of the channel, near the walls, Rout and Lim’s team saw rapid fluctuations of molecules — those were the wiggly nucleoporins.—
Yasemin Saplakoglu,
Quanta Magazine,
9 Mar. 2026
-
The team then carefully lowers Caterpillar into the water, where the mother rushes to scoop her pup up as the two share a wiggly embrace.—
Rachel Raposas,
PEOPLE,
13 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Even Jason notices the guests are fidgety.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
24 Feb. 2026
-
The two go toe-to-toe in power and precision, but the Breville’s intuitive assembly is a massive improvement on the Cuisinart’s notoriously fidgety and fussy locking mechanisms.—
Noah Kaufman,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
29 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
And Pattinson is certainly accomplished at moving from twitchy to twitchier, playing the whole thing as a compulsively rational dialogue with himself.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Just look at KuveNiemann’s crooked grin, frozen, faraway eyes and twitchy bearing.—
Theater Critic,
San Francisco Chronicle,
29 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The Brooklyn grandmom was upset that the women were allowing their dogs to defecate in an empty lot next to her property, her son told the Daily News at the time.—
Kerry Burke,
New York Daily News,
25 Apr. 2026
-
My mom was very upset that the inheritance was not divided up equally and asked me several times why my portion would be so much larger.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Mercury News,
24 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Medieval Christians looked at the very same phenomenon and imagined it as a reflection of divine will, the transformation of a wriggly worm into a flying jewel an earthly reminder of the transfiguration of Jesus to Christ.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
24 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Around that time, Celeste’s family and friends became increasingly worried about her safety and whereabouts, urgently pleading for help from their neighbors, the public and police.—
Andi Babineau,
CNN Money,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Two months into communicating with Niamh, not seeing any money flowing back into her crypto wallets, Holder became worried.—
Anna Schecter,
CBS News,
23 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
This project made Cooper nervous for several reasons.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Apr. 2026
-
The players looked worked up at times and the fans are nervous.—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
20 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The president and his Cabinet members are giving conflicting statements about the impact of the war on gas prices as Americans grow more anxious about the economic toll that the conflict is taking.—
Jared Gans,
The Hill,
21 Apr. 2026
-
This is the move that helps the shyest, most introverted, most socially anxious people relax.—
Henna Pryor,
CNBC,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Squirmy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/squirmy. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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