as in twitching
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1
as in weaving
to cause to twine about one another
tends to writhe his fingers together when he's nervous or upset
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in squirming
to make jerky or restless movements
writhing in pain from his injuries
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of writhing
Hunter Ingram,
Variety,
6 Sep. 2025
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
26 June 2026
Surrounded by her family, Sybil’s body goes limp after several intense minutes of writhing in pain on the bed.
—
Ew Staff,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 June 2026
The sight of Edward Cabrera writhing on the ground in pain was not one Craig Counsell needed to see Tuesday night.
—
Sahadev Sharma,
New York Times,
24 June 2026
In the opening minutes, a crunching collision in front of the goal between Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku and Iranian goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand left Beiranvand writhing on the grass for several minutes, holding his face.
—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
22 June 2026
The process involves a writhing dance that looks a lot like the dance that male and female sunfish perform with each other prior to breeding.
—
Elizabeth Kolbert,
New Yorker,
22 June 2026
Adams, for one, spent a fair portion of the first half on the grass, writhing in pain.
—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
20 June 2026
Even as Chisholm spent several minutes on the ground writhing in pain, a few of his teammates, including Judge, Grisham and Clarke Schmidt, couldn’t help but smirk at his misfortune.
—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
19 June 2026
And just as the image of black people beaten for trying to cross a bridge resonated beyond our community, the image of a Palestinian hooked up to an IV, writhing in agony and burning alive, resonates far beyond theirs.
—
Ta-Nehisi Coates,
Vanity Fair,
15 June 2026
Noun
Throughout the writhing and the screaming, Julia’s fortitude wears down a defiant Davina, whose history with Lovat feeds the moment.
—
Hunter Ingram,
Variety,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
There was no diving here; no, this was earnest, earned writhing on the grass — medically justified.
—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
26 June 2026
Surrounded by her family, Sybil’s body goes limp after several intense minutes of writhing in pain on the bed.
—
Ew Staff,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 June 2026
The sight of Edward Cabrera writhing on the ground in pain was not one Craig Counsell needed to see Tuesday night.
—
Sahadev Sharma,
New York Times,
24 June 2026
In the opening minutes, a crunching collision in front of the goal between Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku and Iranian goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand left Beiranvand writhing on the grass for several minutes, holding his face.
—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
22 June 2026
The process involves a writhing dance that looks a lot like the dance that male and female sunfish perform with each other prior to breeding.
—
Elizabeth Kolbert,
New Yorker,
22 June 2026
Adams, for one, spent a fair portion of the first half on the grass, writhing in pain.
—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
20 June 2026
Even as Chisholm spent several minutes on the ground writhing in pain, a few of his teammates, including Judge, Grisham and Clarke Schmidt, couldn’t help but smirk at his misfortune.
—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
19 June 2026
And just as the image of black people beaten for trying to cross a bridge resonated beyond our community, the image of a Palestinian hooked up to an IV, writhing in agony and burning alive, resonates far beyond theirs.
—
Ta-Nehisi Coates,
Vanity Fair,
15 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for writhing
Noun
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Casting near banks and using a twitching technique can increase success during the hatch.
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During this phase, octopuses display visible twitching along with rapid changes in skin color and texture, per NPR.
Verb
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Around 30 Maple Park Middle School students spent the last few weeks of the summer term weaving English language arts and STEM skills together to research the international soccer teams with base camps in Kansas City and create animatronics based on their findings.
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Some thirty years after weaving Replica, Schultz set to work on a rug based on the 9040 processor made at the Shiprock plant.
Verb
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Unless your companion could use a hand or is traveling with young kids (in the latter case, if this person also happens to be your spouse or partner, really not cool to leave them with the stroller, diaper bag, squirming kids).
-
The player who was hit by the cart immediately grabbed his thigh and knee area while squirming in pain on the ground.
Noun
-
Barnard attended the ceremony with Soprano, Lola’s female stand-in and a convincing lookalike, who accepted the collar with considerable enthusiasm and even more considerable wriggling.
Verb
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Andrade landed her double-twisting Yurchenko vault cleanly with a small step, earning a massive score from the judges.
-
Scientists have discovered a new way to control quantum light sources by twisting atomically thin layers of a material known as hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), a breakthrough that could help bring quantum technologies closer to practical use.
Verb
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In addition to having lofty themes, this is also a fairly rousing adventure with enough visual panache to keep any kid from fidgeting in his seat.
-
Pekara said hospital surveillance footage captured him fidgeting under the blanket.
Noun
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Her fiddling is a looser, freer, more accessible type of memorialization—less a notation than an invocation, a summoning of her homeland’s spirit.
-
Colorado’s lone goal was a result of some Matt Wells tactical fiddling — and Keegan Rosenberry playing like his job’s on the line — gone right.
Verb
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Applying frosting is one of the few things that cannot be said to be a subset of Haaland’s métier; after tossing his balky piping bag aside in frustration, the Norseman issued an expletive that was deemed bleep-worthy by Fox’s Standards & Practices crew.
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Given the vast number of teens who are nowadays encountering mental health issues, tossing specialized labor at the matter is simply not realistic.
Cite this Entry
“Writhing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/writhing. Accessed 27 Jun. 2026.
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