First Known Use: 13th century
Dictionary
1cringe
verb \ˈkrinj\
: to feel disgust or embarrassment and often to show this feeling by a movement of your face or body
: to make a sudden movement from fear of being hit or hurt
cringedcring·ing
Full Definition of CRINGE
intransitive verb
1
: to draw in or contract one's muscles involuntarily (as from cold or pain)
2
: to shrink in fear or servility
3
: to behave in an excessively humble or servile way
4
: to recoil in distaste <Americans cringed … at the use of a term now regarded as a slur — William Safire>
— cring·er noun
See cringe defined for English-language learners
See cringe defined for kids
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Origin of CRINGE
Middle English crengen; akin to Old English cringan to yield, Middle High German krank weak
Synonym Discussion of CRINGE
fawn, toady, truckle, cringe, cower mean to behave abjectly before a superior. fawn implies seeking favor by servile flattery or exaggerated attention <waiters fawning over a celebrity>. toady suggests the attempt to ingratiate oneself by an abjectly menial or subservient attitude <toadying to his boss>. truckle implies the subordination of oneself and one's desires or judgment to those of a superior <truckling to a powerful lobbyist>. cringe suggests a bowing or shrinking in fear or servility <a cringing sycophant>. cower suggests a display of abject fear in the company of threatening or domineering people <cowering before a bully>.
2cringe
noun
CRINGE Defined for Kids
cringe
verb \ˈkrinj\
cringedcring·ing
Definition of CRINGE for Kids
1
: to shrink in fear : cower <… when you see a dog cringe … You know somebody's been kicking at him. — Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, Shiloh>
2
: to show disgust or embarrassment at something <He cringed at the suggestion of eating liver.>
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