cringe

/kɹɪnd͡ʒ/

//kɹɪnd͡ʒ// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"cringe" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“cringe” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #14,097. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#14,097
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
14
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To cower, flinch, recoil, shrink, or tense, as in disgust, embarrassment, or fear.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cringe · cringe · English

cringe · rank #14,097 · 9 variants · 14 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #14,097
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 14 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH covert

Nearest frequency peer: covert (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “cringe”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “cringe” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

cringe vs crone
67% similar
cringe vs crying
67% similar
cringe vs curing
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for cringe
PropertyValue
Headwordcringe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/kɹɪnd͡ʒ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#14,097
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs14
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “cringe”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).cringelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “covert” (#14,096), “Crosby” (#14,098), “Cunningham” (#14,099). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cringe” is #14,097. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around cringe (IPA /kɹɪnd͡ʒ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #14,097 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for cringe, with forms such as "ccringe", "cirnge", and "crigne". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 14 confusable-pair relationships, "crone", "crying", "curing", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: The verb is derived from Middle English crengen (“to bend in a haughty manner; to condescend”) [and other forms], from Old English *crenċan, *crenċġan, *crenġan (“to cause to fall or turn”), the causative of crinċġan (“to yield; to cringe; to fall; to die, … The correct English form is cringe, spelled C-R-I-N-G-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To cower, flinch, recoil, shrink, or tense, as in disgust, embarrassment, or fear.
  2. 2
    To experience an inward feeling of disgust, embarrassment, or fear; (by extension) to feel very embarrassed.
  3. 3
    To bow or crouch in servility.
  4. 4
    To act in an obsequious or servile manner.
  5. 5
    To draw (a body part) close to the body; also, to distort or wrinkle (the face, etc.).
  6. 6
    To bow or crouch to (someone) in servility; to escort (someone) in a cringing manner.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how cringe appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. He cringed as the bird collided with the window.
  2. [W]hen they were come up to the place where the Lions were, the Boys that went before, were glad to cringe behind, for they were afraid of the Lions, ſo they ſtept back and went behind.

Etymology

The verb is derived from Middle English crengen (“to bend in a haughty manner; to condescend”) [and other forms], from Old English *crenċan, *crenċġan, *crenġan (“to cause to fall or turn”), the causative of crinċġan (“to yield; to cringe; to fall; to die, perish”), from Proto-Germanic *krangijaną (“to cause to fall; to cause to turn”), from Proto-Germanic *kringaną, *krinkaną (“to fall; to turn; to yield”) (from Proto-Indo-European *grenǵʰ- (“to turn”)) + *-janą (suffix forming causatives with the sense ‘to cause to do (the action of the verb)’ from strong verbs). The English word is cognate with Danish krænge (“to turn inside out, evert”), Dutch krengen (“to careen, veer”) and Dutch kring (“circle”), Scots crenge, creenge, creinge, crienge (“to cringe; to shrug”), Swedish kränga (“to careen; to heel, lurch; to toss”), and West Frisian kringe (“to pinch; to poke; to push; to insist, urge”); and is a doublet of crinkle. The noun and adjective are derived from the verb via zero derivation.

This word in other languages

contraerse(Español)grincer des dents(Français)zusammenzucken(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccringe
  • cirnge
  • crigne
  • crineg
  • cringge
  • crinnge
  • crnige
  • crringe
  • rcinge

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of cringe - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ccringe1cirnge2crigne2crineg2cringge1crinnge1crnige2crringe1
Edit distance from "cringe"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "cringe"?
"cringe" is spelled C-R-I-N-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is /kɹɪnd͡ʒ/.
What does "cringe" mean?
As a verb, "cringe" means: To cower, flinch, recoil, shrink, or tense, as in disgust, embarrassment, or fear.
What words are commonly confused with "cringe"?
"cringe" is commonly confused with "crone", "crying", "curing". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "cringe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cringe" is /kɹɪnd͡ʒ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "cringe"?
The verb is derived from Middle English crengen (“to bend in a haughty manner; to condescend”) [and other forms], from Old English *crenċan, *crenċġan, *crenġan (“to cause to fall or turn”), the causative of crinċġan (“to yield; to cringe; to fall... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "cringe", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

covert#14,096Crosby#14,098dagger#14,101dipped#14,107

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

chassis9 variantsburner9 variantsbrewer9 variantsBarney9 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list