- wriggle
- wriggle (v.) late 15c., from M.L.G. wrigglen "to wriggle," from P.Gmc. *wrig-, *wreik- "to turn" (see WRY (Cf. wry)). Related to O.E. wrigian "to turn, incline, go forward."
Etymology dictionary. 2014.
wriggle
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wriggle — [rig′əl] vi. wriggled, wriggling [MLowG wriggeln, akin to OFris wrigia: see WRY] 1. to move to and fro with a twisting, writhing motion; twist and turn; squirm 2. to move along with a wriggling motion 3. to make one s way by subtle or shifty… … English World dictionary
Wriggle — Wrig gle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Wriggled}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Wriggling}.] [Freq. of wrig, probably from OE. wrikken to move to and fro; cf. LG. wriggeln, D. wrikken, Sw. vricka, Dan. vrikke.] To move the body to and fro with short, writhing motions … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Wriggle — Wrig gle, v. t. To move with short, quick contortions; to move by twisting and squirming; like a worm. [1913 Webster] Covetousness will wriggle itself out at a small hole. Fuller. [1913 Webster] Wriggling his body to recover His seat, and cast… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Wriggle — Wrig gle, a. Wriggling; frisky; pliant; flexible. [Obs.] Their wriggle tails. Spenser. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
wriggle — ► VERB 1) twist and turn with quick writhing movements. 2) (wriggle out of) avoid by devious means. ► NOUN ▪ a wriggling movement. DERIVATIVES wriggler noun wriggly adjective … English terms dictionary
Wriggle — Wrig gle, n. Act of wriggling; a short or quick writhing motion or contortion. [Webster 1913 Suppl.] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
wriggle — [v] maneuver out of; wiggle convulse, crawl, dodge, extricate oneself, glide, jerk, jiggle, ooze, skew, slink, slip, snake, sneak, squirm, turn, twist, twitch, wag, waggle, worm, writhe, zigzag; concepts 30,149 … New thesaurus
wriggle — I UK [ˈrɪɡ(ə)l] / US verb [intransitive/transitive] Word forms wriggle : present tense I/you/we/they wriggle he/she/it wriggles present participle wriggling past tense wriggled past participle wriggled to move, or to make something move, by… … English dictionary
wriggle — wrig|gle1 [ˈrıgəl] v [Date: 1300 1400; Origin: Probably from Middle Low German wriggeln] 1.) to twist your body from side to side with small quick movements ▪ Stop wriggling and let me put your T shirt on. wriggle under/through/into ▪ He wriggled … Dictionary of contemporary English
wriggle — [[t]rɪ̱g(ə)l[/t]] wriggles, wriggling, wriggled 1) VERB If you wriggle or wriggle part of your body, you twist and turn with quick movements, for example because you are uncomfortable. The babies are wriggling on their tummies... They were… … English dictionary
