as in flinched
to draw back in fear, pain, or disgust
winced at the movie's graphic depiction of combat injuries
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Recent Examples of winced
Vanderbilt was in a ton of pain, and even the Thunder bench winced at Vanderbilt’s hand.
—
Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 6 May 2026
Internally, some employees winced as the prices of some chips surpassed $7.
—Wire Tbd, Dallas Morning News, 8 Apr. 2026
Internally, some employees winced as the prices of some chips surpassed $7.
—Bloomberg, Oc Register, 7 Apr. 2026
Grunloh winced when asked about the team’s struggles.
—Rick Armstrong, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
Johnson’s elbow hit Cunningham’s lower back and right hip on the way down, and Detroit’s 24-year-old star immediately winced in pain before slowly sitting up.
—Matt Moret, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Forrest pushed it and winced as tear gas sprayed.
—James Verini, New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2026
The hard-drinking, hyper-sensitive Fitzgerald himself would have winced at any of the five adaptations of The Great Gatsby.
—Peter Bart, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026
Charleigh inwardly winced and froze in place, hand still on the knob.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 6 May 2026
Internally, some employees winced as the prices of some chips surpassed $7.
—Wire Tbd, Dallas Morning News, 8 Apr. 2026
Internally, some employees winced as the prices of some chips surpassed $7.
—Bloomberg, Oc Register, 7 Apr. 2026
Grunloh winced when asked about the team’s struggles.
—Rick Armstrong, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
Johnson’s elbow hit Cunningham’s lower back and right hip on the way down, and Detroit’s 24-year-old star immediately winced in pain before slowly sitting up.
—Matt Moret, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Forrest pushed it and winced as tear gas sprayed.
—James Verini, New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2026
The hard-drinking, hyper-sensitive Fitzgerald himself would have winced at any of the five adaptations of The Great Gatsby.
—Peter Bart, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026
Charleigh inwardly winced and froze in place, hand still on the knob.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for winced
Verb
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Meta Platforms is splashing some serious cash on AI infrastructure, and investors have flinched.—
Amanda Gerut,
Fortune,
29 Apr. 2026
-
The recruiting operation has barely flinched, as Bama has reeled in its fair share of five-stars and top five classes since DeBoer's arrival in January 2024.—
Austin Perry OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The young Forster recoiled from the school’s culture of authoritarianism and militaristic chauvinism, which may have found expression in the students’ often appalling attitudes toward their own mothers.—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
7 May 2026
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Investors recoiled out of fears of an endless quagmire.—
Jake Angelo,
Fortune,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
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For a decade, viewers have cringed at Amanda Batula and Kyle Cooke’s rocky relationship, the dénouement of which is currently playing out on season ten of Summer House.—
Rebecca Jennings,
Vulture,
1 Apr. 2026
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And the mother of Carter, a 5-year-old boy, cringed in fear when Carter (who was celebrating his birthday) was approached at a neighborhood bike park by a group of much older boys.—
Chris John Amorosino,
Hartford Courant,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Winced.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/winced. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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