wrig·gle

[rig-uhl] verb, wrig·gled, wrig·gling, noun
verb (used without object)
1.
to twist to and fro; writhe; squirm.
2.
to move along by twisting and turning the body, as a worm or snake.
3.
to make one's way by shifts or expedients (often followed by out ): to wriggle out of a difficulty.
verb (used with object)
4.
to cause to wriggle: to wriggle one's hips.
5.
to bring, get, make, etc., by wriggling: to wriggle one's way through a narrow opening.
00:10
Wriggle is one of our favorite verbs.
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to expurgate (a written work) by removing or modifying passages considered vulgar or objectionable.
chat, to converse
noun
6.
act of wriggling; a wriggling movement.

Origin:
1485–95; < Middle Low German wriggelen (cognate with Dutch wriggelen), frequentative of *wriggen to twist, turn, akin to Old English wrīgian to twist; see wry

wrig·gling·ly, adverb
out·wrig·gle, verb (used with object), out·wrig·gled, out·wrig·gling.
un·wrig·gled, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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World English Dictionary
wriggle (ˈrɪɡəl) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
vb
1.  to make or cause to make twisting movements
2.  (intr) to progress by twisting and turning
3.  (intr; foll by into or out of) to manoeuvre oneself by clever or devious means: wriggle out of an embarrassing situation
 
n
4.  a wriggling movement or action
5.  a sinuous marking or course
 
[C15: from Middle Low German; compare Dutch wriggelen]
 
'wriggler
 
n
 
'wriggly
 
adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

wriggle
1495, from M.L.G. wrigglen "to wriggle," from P.Gmc. *wrig-, *wreik- "to turn" (see wry). Related to O.E. wrigian "to turn, incline, go forward."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
They wriggle and wriggle and twist and turn until you wonder why they don't
  fall apart.
Two weeks later the butterflies wriggle free, walk out and make a winged
  getaway.
They were thus able to distinguish the quick from the dead by colour, rather
  than propensity to wriggle.
In insects which squirm or wriggle, the blood and the internal organs surge
  back and forth with every movement.
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