squirmy

American  

[skwur-mee] / ˈskwɜr mi /

adjective

squirmier, squirmiest

1. characterized by squirming.

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squirmy British  

/ ˈskwɜːmɪ /

adjective

1. moving with a wriggling motion

2. making one squirm

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Other Word Forms

• squirminess noun

Etymology

Origin of squirmy

First recorded in 1830–40; squirm + -y ¹

Example Sentences

When Rob Reiner was interviewed over lunch in 1998 by a Times columnist, Nick, then 5, tumbled around the table, prompting his father to quip: “He’s floppy. He’s always moving around. He was born like that. When he came out, the doctor said, ‘This is a squirmy one.’

From Los Angeles Times

I felt squirmy when I said the next part.

From Literature

He heard it all the time, of course—at school, around the complex, in movies—but for whatever reason, it made him feel squirmy.

From Literature

Yet in some ways, Pivotal’s technology is even more audacious, in that it puts a human pilot—potentially a squirmy, Earth-hugging rookie like me—squarely into the control loop of a flying machine.

From The Wall Street Journal

Yet over time, the album — which Jepsen made with a host of hip producers and songwriters including Rostam, Ariel Rechtshaid and Blood Orange’s Dev Hynes — became a cult favorite beloved for its squirmy ’80s R&B grooves and its tone of unabashed yearning.

From Los Angeles Times