# cringe

> English word · Verb · IPA /kɹɪnd͡ʒ/ · frequency rank #14,097

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

## 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.

## Easily confused with
- **crone** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cringe-vs-crone)
- **crying** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cringe-vs-crying)
- **curing** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cringe-vs-curing)
- **cringed** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cringe-vs-cringed)
- **cine** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cine-vs-cringe)
- **crime** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/crime-vs-cringe)
- **crane** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/crane-vs-cringe)
- **cling** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cling-vs-cringe)
- **ching** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ching-vs-cringe)
- **change** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/change-vs-cringe)
- **caring** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caring-vs-cringe)
- **clingy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/clingy-vs-cringe)
- **coinage** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coinage-vs-cringe)
- **Corinne** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/corinne-vs-cringe)

## Common misspellings (9)
`ccringe`, `cirnge`, `crigne`, `crineg`, `cringge`, `crinnge`, `crnige`, `crringe`, `rcinge`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/cringe