Showing results for "writhing"

• present participle of writhe.

writhing

American  

[rahy-thing] / ˈraɪ ðɪŋ /

adjective

1. twisting about or squirming, as from pain, violent effort, uncontrolled passion, etc..

   I saw a big red-tailed hawk carry a writhing blacksnake across the sky.

2. feeling or expressing acute mental discomfort or distress.

   His words were a writhing mix of anger and confusion and he didn't spare her any of it.

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noun

1. an act or instance of twisting about or squirming.

   The writhing of these fly larvae around their food looks rather strange, but it turns out there's a reason for their wriggling.

2. the state of feeling or act of expressing acute mental discomfort or distress.

   Perpetual fear and mistrust, inner pain, or the writhing of conscience may render a human existence worse than death.

Other Word Forms

• writhingly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of writhing

First recorded in 1350–1400; writh(e) ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; writh(e) ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun senses

Explanation

Writhing is a snake- or worm-like movement — a rolling and twisting motion, like your writhing brother who can't stand to have his feet tickled. When you picture a wreath, you probably think of a festive decoration hanging on someone's front door. So it might surprise you that this word shares its origin with writhing, a word that often describes a reaction to pain or extreme discomfort. The wreathes of today are rings — originally, a wreath was a bandage that wrapped around and around. Writhing is also a rolling, or circular motion.

Example Sentences

Sixteen hours after Tatum was writhing on the court against the New York Knicks, he was stretched out on O’Malley’s operating table on the West side of Manhattan.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026

As soon as Mahomes was left writhing on the ground and grabbing his knee late in the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, it was clear he had sustained a serious injury.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 15, 2025

The ghost of Gaga past re-emerges for Perfect Celebrity, writhing with camp energy in a shallow grave as she sings about the pressure and torture of stardom.

From BBC • Sep. 30, 2025

Green Bay was especially effective with its pass rush up the middle Sunday, swarming Matthew Stafford, sacking him three times and repeatedly leveling hits that left him writhing on the turf.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 7, 2024

A single sweep, and a third of it lay, a writhing heap of thorns, in a pile twenty feet away.

From "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" by Robert C. O'Brien