wriggled; wriggling
ˈri-g(ə-)liŋ 
1
: to move the body or a bodily part to and fro with short writhing motions like a worm : squirm
2
: to move or advance by twisting and turning
3
: to extricate or insinuate oneself or reach a goal as if by wriggling
1
: to cause to move in short quick contortions
2
: to introduce, insinuate, or bring into a state or place by or as if by wriggling
1
: a short or quick writhing motion or contortion
2
: a formation or marking of sinuous design
Synonyms
Examples of wriggle in a Sentence
Verb
The children wriggled and squirmed in their chairs.
She managed to wriggle free of her ropes.
They wriggled out of their wet clothes.
I had trouble getting the wriggling fish off my hook.
The snake wriggled across the path and went underneath a bush.
He was able to wriggle through the narrow opening.
Recent Examples on the Web
Veronique Greenwood, WIRED, 11 Aug. 2024
In the first dish, which had been infused with MRSA and molecular machines, the larvae wriggled happily.
—Dhruv Khullar, The New Yorker, 13 June 2024
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 24 July 2024
Every programmer-marketer relationship adheres to its own interior logic, and a longtime supporter of a network can expect to be granted a fair amount of wriggle room if under-deliveries make a case for shifting inventory out of NFL games.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 19 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for wriggle 
Verb
These clusters moved around by coordinating the movement of their flagella, the ones at the back of the cluster holding still, the ones at the front wriggling.
—Veronique Greenwood, WIRED, 11 Aug. 2024
In the first dish, which had been infused with MRSA and molecular machines, the larvae wriggled happily.
—Dhruv Khullar, The New Yorker, 13 June 2024
Noun
The court date, originally been set for June 18, will be pushed back by an as-yet undetermined number of days to allow Diamond a little extra wriggle room to secure a new carriage deal with Comcast.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 24 July 2024
Every programmer-marketer relationship adheres to its own interior logic, and a longtime supporter of a network can expect to be granted a fair amount of wriggle room if under-deliveries make a case for shifting inventory out of NFL games.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 19 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for wriggle
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wriggle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near wriggle
Cite this Entry
“Wriggle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wriggle. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
wriggle
2 of 2 noun1
: a short or quick twisting motion
2
: a formation or marking having a winding or twisting course or appearance
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