cringeworthy
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cringeworthy
First recorded in 1975–80; cringe ( def. ) + -worthy ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But, game as the actors are in playing up the sad and cringeworthy complications, the start-over imperative should have been taken to heart when the script was in the writing stage.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026
He had previously engaged in the first of several cringeworthy pre-recorded sketches alongside his comedic stalker Jack Whitehall.
From BBC • Feb. 28, 2026
The text exchanges contain nothing remotely illegal or related to Epstein’s crimes yet are cringeworthy enough as to have forced Mr. Summers to take leave from teaching duties at Harvard.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 20, 2025
Star edge rusher Khalil Mack got his lower left arm crunched on a tackle, the TV replay was cringeworthy, and had to leave the game with an elbow injury.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 16, 2025
It’s awful, cringeworthy, but I start to weep.
From "The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
