cringeworthy
cringe·worthy/ˈkɹɪnd͡ʒˌwɜːði/adjective
cringeworthy is spelled C-R-I-N-G-E-W-O-R-T-H-Y: 12 letters and 2 syllables (cringe·worthy). It appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 58,063rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, cringeworthy means “That causes or may cause one to cringe with disgust, embarrassment (often vicarious embarrassment), etc.; awkward, disgusting, embarrassing” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in cringeworthy?
| Letters | 12: C-R-I-N-G-E-W-O-R-T-H-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: cringe·worthy |
| In writing | about once in every 4 million words; the 58,063rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is cringeworthy?
Cringeworthy appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 58,063rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce cringeworthy?
- UK /ˈkɹɪnd͡ʒˌwɜːði/
- British /ˈkɹɪnd͡ʒˌwəːðɪj/
- /ˈkɾɪnd͡ʒˌweːði/
Cringeworthy has 2 syllables, split cringe·worthy in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-cringeworthy.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Naomi_Persephone_Amethyst_(NaomiAmethyst)-cringeworthy.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with cringeworthy
Also written: cringe-worthy (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of cringeworthy
- more cringeworthy comparative
- cringeworthier comparative
- most cringeworthy superlative
- cringeworthiest superlative
- cringe-worthy
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does cringeworthy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
informalThat causes or may cause one to cringe with disgust, embarrassment (often vicarious embarrassment), etc.; awkward, disgusting, embarrassing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Cringeworthy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense that causes or may cause one to cringe with disgust, embarrassment, etc:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | embarrassant, malaisant |
| German | blamabel, beschämend, erschütternd, peinlich, unangenehm, zum Fremdschämen |
| Spanish | que da alipori/grima, de alipori/grima, para morir(se) de vergüenza |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does cringeworthy come from?
From cringe (verb) + -worthy (suffix meaning of ‘sufficient worth for, deserving of’), popularized by the surname of the character Cuthbert Cringeworthy, an extremely studious pupil introduced in 1972 into The Bash Street Kids, a comic strip by the Scottish cartoonist David Sutherland (1933–2023) published in the British magazine The Beano.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).