Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
Synonyms
Nearby Entries
writhe - 5 dictionary results

writhe

  [rahyth] verb, writhed, writh⋅ing, noun
Use writhe in a Sentence
–verb (used without object)
1. to twist the body about, or squirm, as in pain, violent effort, etc.
2. to shrink mentally, as in acute discomfort.
–verb (used with object)
3. to twist or bend out of shape or position; distort; contort.
4. to twist (oneself, the body, etc.) about, as in pain.
–noun
5. a writhing movement; a twisting of the body, as in pain.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME writhen (v.), OE wrīthan to twist, wind; c. ON rītha to knit, twist; akin to wreath, wry

Related forms:
writher, noun
writh⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. thresh, flail, contort, wriggle.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To writhe
writhe   (rīth)   
v.   writhed, writh·ing, writhes

v.   intr.
  1. To twist, as in pain, struggle, or embarrassment.
  2. To move with a twisting or contorted motion.
  3. To suffer acutely.
v.   tr.
To cause to twist or squirm; contort.
n.  The act or an instance of writhing; a contortion.

[Middle English writhen, from Old English wrīthan; see wer-2 in Indo-European roots.]
writh'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Writhe

Writhe\, v. t. [imp. Writhed; p. p. Writhed, Obs. or Poetic Writhen; p. pr. & vb. n. Writhing.] [OE. writhen, AS. wr[=i]?an to twist; akin to OHG. r[=i]dan, Icel. r[=i]?a, Sw. vrida, Dan. vride. Cf. Wreathe, Wrest, Wroth.]

1. To twist; to turn; now, usually, to twist or turn so as to distort; to wring. "With writhing [turning] of a pin." --Chaucer.

Then Satan first knew pain, And writhed him to and fro. --Milton.

Her mouth she writhed, her forehead taught to frown. --Dryden.

His battle-writhen arms, and mighty hands. --Tennyson.

2. To wrest; to distort; to pervert.

The reason which he yieldeth showeth the least part of his meaning to be that whereunto his words are writhed. --Hooker.

3. To extort; to wring; to wrest. [R.]

The nobility hesitated not to follow the example of their sovereign in writhing money from them by every species of oppression. --Sir W. Scott.

Writhe

Writhe\, v. i. To twist or contort the body; to be distorted; as, to writhe with agony. Also used figuratively.

After every attempt, he felt that he had failed, and writhed with shame and vexation. --Macaulay.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Cite This Source
Language Translation for : writhe
Spanish: retorcerse,
German: sich krümmen,
Japanese: 身もだえする
More Translations »

writhe 
O.E. wriðan "to twist or bend," earlier "to bind or fetter," from P.Gmc. *writhanan (cf. N.Fris. wrial, O.H.G. ridan, O.N. riða, M.Swed. vriþa, M.Da. vride), from PIE *wreit- "to turn, bend" (see wreath).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see writhe on Thesaurus | Reference