Synonyms for cringe
- verb
- adjective
Definitions
- v. 1
To cower, flinch, recoil, shrink, or tense, as in disgust, embarrassment, or fear.
He cringed as the bird collided with the window.
- v. 2
To experience an inward feeling of disgust, embarrassment, or fear; (by extension) to feel very embarrassed.
- adj. 1
Synonym of cringeworthy or uncool, inducing awkwardness or secondhand embarrassment.
Brands trying to appeal to young people with memes is the most cringe thing ever.
Related words
- Word family
- cringelord cringetastic cringing cringingly
Forms
- Past participle
- cringed
e.g. cringed → cowered, crept, groveled, crawled…
Example sentences
- creep You scared me! Don't creep up on people like that.
- crawl The thought of powdered sugar makes my skin crawl.
- cower The noise caused Lorenzo to cower in fear.
- flinch He tried not to flinch as the needle approached.
- wince You don't have to wince like that. I'll fix it so it doesn't hurt.
By length
- 3 letters
- bow1
- 4 letters
- duck1, bend1, funk1, fawn1
- 5 letters
- sneak1, creep1, crawl1, corny2, stoop1, quail1, wince1, cower2
- 6 letters
- cursed1, shrink1, crouch1, recoil2, flinch1, grovel2
- 7 letters
- truckle, squinch
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (corny2 = 2 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- gêner
- Italiano
- disturbare
- Español
- molestar
- Deutsch
- behindern
- Català
- amoïnar