What does wriggle mean?
Wriggle describes movement that involves twisting, turning, or squirming. It can be literal, as when a worm wriggles through soil or a child wriggles in an uncomfortable chair, and it can also suggest a person’s indirect effort to maneuver out of a difficult situation. The word often carries a vivid, slightly informal quality because the movement it describes is typically quick and irregular rather than smooth or deliberate. As a noun, a wriggle is a single small movement of this kind, such as a squirm or an evasive shift. Wriggle is also useful when describing an action that achieves something through persistence and flexibility: someone may wriggle free, wriggle into a position, or find a wriggling path through an obstacle. Its imagery makes it especially effective in vivid prose and informal description.
To move by twisting, turning, or squirming with quick, irregular movements; to make progress by shifting or maneuvering.
"The child wriggled out from under the table."
Often used for small creatures, children, and people making an awkward or evasive movement.
A small twisting, squirming, or evasive movement.
"A sudden wriggle of the spider caught her attention."
Usually countable and commonly used for a brief, visible movement.
The noun is countable and refers to individual twisting or squirming movements.
"The caterpillar made a series of wriggles as it crossed the path."
A wriggle is motion with an escape route built in: the body twists, turns, and searches for a way through.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does wriggle come from?
The word developed in early modern English as a verb meaning to twist, turn, or move irregularly. It is related to Old English words concerned with twisting and crooked movement, and its surviving relatives include wry, writh, and wrig. The modern verb preserves the basic sense of a body making quick, twisting movements, while the noun developed for the corresponding gesture or movement.
Related word forms
How wriggle is actually used
The word is neutral in register and often conveys that movement is quick, awkward, playful, or evasive. It is especially common in descriptions of small animals, children, and people trying to adjust to a cramped or uncomfortable position.
Easily confused with wriggle
A wiggle is generally a small, often playful side-to-side movement, whereas a wriggle often suggests more forceful or irregular twisting and squirming.