1
as in squirmed
to make jerky or restless movements
a toddler wriggling in his seat all throughout the church service
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
as in infiltrated
to introduce in a gradual, secret, or clever way
within a month of his arrival, this social upstart had wriggled himself into the family's good graces
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of wriggled
Venezuelan fans — who made the long trip to loanDepot Park for the 2026 World Baseball Classic — wriggled with every pitch.
—
Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 17 Mar. 2026
Play was recycled and Harrison Armstrong ended up firing a good chance too close to goalkeeper Senne Lammens after Iliman Ndiaye had wriggled free down the right.
—Patrick Boyland, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Emma wriggled obediently out of the offending articles.
—Literary Hub, 26 Feb. 2026
In the soil in his palm, an earthworm wriggled.
—Madeline Heim, jsonline.com, 26 Dec. 2025
Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 17 Mar. 2026
Play was recycled and Harrison Armstrong ended up firing a good chance too close to goalkeeper Senne Lammens after Iliman Ndiaye had wriggled free down the right.
—Patrick Boyland, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Emma wriggled obediently out of the offending articles.
—Literary Hub, 26 Feb. 2026
In the soil in his palm, an earthworm wriggled.
—Madeline Heim, jsonline.com, 26 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wriggled
Verb
-
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,
ABC News,
11 May 2026
-
His Japanese guest, usually a paragon of diplomatic cool, visibly squirmed.—
Andreas Kluth,
Twin Cities,
14 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Woods ultimately crawled out of the passenger side of his Land Rover after the crash.—
David K. Li,
NBC news,
12 May 2026
-
When a Republican says something foolish, network anchors react like a gator just crawled into the studio wearing a MAGA hat.—
Larry Clifton,
The Orlando Sentinel,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
The menu is full of sustaining stews, ample vegetables and, from the toné (clay oven), khachapuri, a genre of breads infiltrated by cheese and by turns fluffy, elastic, oozy and tender.—
Ligaya Mishan,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
-
For anyone whose home has been infiltrated by mice, or termites, pest control is worth the cost.—
Ana Durrani,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Pebbles twitched, branches waggled, cholla wiggled, weeds erupted then dried up and died.—
Alina Hartounian,
NPR,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Kearse twitched briefly after the lethal drugs began entering his system but stopped moving several minutes later.—
Freida Frisaro,
Sun Sentinel,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In the middle of his soiree, the Spaniard had crept away from the other guests to tell Smit some exciting news.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
15 May 2026
-
Security cameras showed the moment three masked suspects crept through the backyard of a La Cañada home before forcing their way inside.—
Jasmine Viel,
CBS News,
12 May 2026
Verb
-
The man was not a hotel guest and allegedly sneaked around the hotel’s key card security system.—
Larry Seward,
Miami Herald,
15 May 2026
-
Defenseman John Carlson made a weak play off his forehand along the left-wing wall that was devoured by Ivan Barbashev, who snuck the puck past Granlund to Dorofeyev for a goal from the slot.—
Andrew Knoll,
Oc Register,
15 May 2026
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
Verb
-
When the referee went down, Sikoa slid a chair in and tried to goad Keys into using it.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
16 May 2026
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Shares in Europe are tracking Asian markets' overnight declines after South Korea's benchmark Kospi index slid more than 6% on Friday, retreating from a fresh record high above 8,000, as broader Asia-Pacific markets fell.—
Hugh Leask,Joseph Wilkins,
CNBC,
15 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wriggled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wriggled. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
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