tingle
Americanverb (used without object)
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to have a sensation of slight prickles, stings, or tremors, as from cold, a sharp blow, excitement, etc..
I tingle all over.
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to cause such a sensation.
The scratch tingles.
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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tinglesimple
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tinglessimple
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have tingledperfect
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has tingledperfect
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am tinglingprogressive
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are tinglingprogressive
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is tinglingprogressive
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have been tinglingperfect progressive
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has been tinglingperfect progressive
Past
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tingledsimple
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had tingledperfect
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was tinglingprogressive
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were tinglingprogressive
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had been tinglingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of tingle
1350–1400; Middle English tinglen (v.), variant of tinkle
Explanation
When something tingles, it prickles or stings a tiny bit. Walking through a haunted house might make your skin tingle with fear. A cool breeze makes your skin tingle, and a pep rally might leave you tingling with excitement. Tingle can also call be used as a noun: a tingle is similar to a shiver or a shudder, a light sensation that may have an emotional or physical cause. An earlier meaning of tingle was "a ringing sensation or sound."
Vocabulary lists containing tingle
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.
See Examples For:
Similarly, his cultural allusions no longer provoke even a tingle, let alone a shock of recognition.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
Cheesy words in normal circumstances, but that was the moment our spines began to tingle and we knew we were about to witness history.
From BBC ● Apr. 1, 2026
The tingle of glycolic acid, the pain of extractions, the warm towels heating my skin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 9, 2025
You've talked about getting that tingle when you were presented with this script.
From Salon ● Oct. 26, 2024
As my fingertips hit the stasis gel, they tingle and burn before going numb.
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
Q: My right foot burns and tingles so badly that it’s hard to sleep.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 23, 2022
Kobie Boykins, a mechanical engineer who was instrumental in building the rovers, recalls getting tingles at Opportunity’s first steps.
From New York Times ● Nov. 3, 2022
“Without trying to sound arrogant, I was surprised and got tingles from it,” July recalled.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2022
One person triumphs, often with shots that send tingles up every spine and will be replayed for decades.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 21, 2021
My heart is pounding, my skin tingles, and my fingers are cold and unsteady.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Mr. Mapisa said the gas tingled as it touched his wounds.
From New York Times ● Jul. 6, 2022
“As kids we used to hold these 9-volt batteries to our tongues and it tingled, that’s roughly how you have to imagine this,” Lierz says.
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 8, 2022
"At that point, the ‘spidey senses’ tingled a little bit."
From Fox News ● Oct. 22, 2021
After the workout, Curtis said, his whole body tingled with soreness, and he was convinced.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 1, 2020
His senses tingled like he’d been injected with caffeine.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
Unlike many other breast cancers, she said symptoms could include itching, tingling, pulling sensations, dimpling or changes to the skin rather than a distinct lump.
From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026
These videos became an online phenomenon more than a decade ago - which some people claim causes them to feel a tingling sensation.
From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2025
This condition leads to tingling, numbness and pain in the hands and feet, and because effective treatments are limited, many patients must reduce or end their therapy early.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 21, 2025
Despite the name, these aren’t peppers at all but members of the citrus family that trigger a numbing, tingling sensation on the tongue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025
Still, his main feeling during the journey was one of tingling impatience.
From "A Single Shard" by Linda Sue Park
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.
