1
as in squirms
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 worms
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 wriggles
That calls for a little extra creativity from its mom — and the movie’s narrator (Emilia Clarke) — who wriggles her mandibles and gets to work embellishing upon what Dahl imagined.
—
Peter Debruge, Variety, 14 Oct. 2025
Peter Debruge, Variety, 14 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wriggles
Verb
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When Brian and Murtagh report that Dougal offended the Grants and Colum had to promise Ellen’s hand to appease the situation, Lord Lovat squirms.—
Lincee Ray Published,
EW.com,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Since the holidays, many of us have spent winter days cooped up inside, shuttling between work, school and home while the calendar crawls toward spring.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Jan. 2026
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In Elf, while Santa (the late Ed Asner) is setting out toys at an orphanage on Christmas Eve, Buddy (Will Ferrell) crawls into his sack.—
Victoria Edel,
PEOPLE,
23 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Guiteau eventually worms his way into an audience, ostensibly seeking an ambassadorship for his dubious contributions to the campaign but, in reality, requesting a path to greatness.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
11 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Jenkins then connected on a pair of TD tosses -- 20 yards to Paul Rios and a three-yarder to Belton, the latter with just eight ticks left before intermission.—
Mike Waters,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
8 Nov. 2025
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Spoken shade amongst the group is as plentiful as actual shade is absent in LA’s concrete desert, and the trio tosses it around with the casual dominance of Shohei Ohtani.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Move too far away from it and the outside chill creeps in.—
Karissa Waddick,
USA Today,
23 Dec. 2025
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Depop determined that, as decision fatigue creeps into even the act of getting dressed, reliable replicas (think tailored trousers, sharp outerwear, crisp button-downs) will become the backbone of Gen Z wardrobes.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Sourcing Journal,
22 Dec. 2025
Verb
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That winter wonderland becomes a claustrophobic nightmare when an extraterrestrial shapeshifter infiltrates the base camp.—
Huntley Woods,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Dec. 2025
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Dhurandhar, which follows an Indian spy who infiltrates Pakistan’s underworld to dismantle terror networks, was not cleared for release, The National reported.—
Tasneem Nashrulla,
semafor.com,
15 Dec. 2025
Verb
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The man fidgets, shifts around in his seat and fixates on Zarutska before pulling out a small knife and striking her multiple times around her neck.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Englewood is home to Cedar Point Environmental Park along Lemon Bay, where pine flatwoods cover most of the park, and Oyster Creek Regional Park, where a boardwalk snakes through tidal mangroves, allowing visitors to enjoy bird-watching.—
Dobrina Zhekova,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Dec. 2025
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Two incumbents — west Charlotte’s Thelma Byers-Bailey and Summer Nunn, whose district snakes along the county’s southern border — chose not to run for reelection to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Board of Education.—
Josh Bergeron,
Charlotte Observer,
2 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Wriggles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wriggles. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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