# tweak

> English word · Verb · IPA /twiːk/ · frequency rank #20,526

## Definitions
1. To pinch and pull with a sudden jerk and twist; to twitch.
2. To adjust slightly; to fine-tune.
3. To tease, to annoy; to get under the skin of (someone, typically so as to irritate them, or by extension to enamor, frighten, etc).
4. To abuse methamphetamines, especially crystal meth.
5. To exhibit extreme nervousness, evasiveness when confronted by authorities, compulsiveness, erratic motion, excitability, etc, due to or mimicking the symptoms of methamphetamine abuse.
6. To be extremely confused; to have no clue what is happening.
7. From a catapult, to strike a target with a missile.

## Etymology
From Middle English twikken, from Old English twiccian (“to pluck”), from Proto-West Germanic *twekkōn (“to fasten; clamp; pinch”). Related to twitch. The drug-related sense may be a blend of twitch and freak.

## Easily confused with
- **tweet** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tweak-vs-tweet)
- **tweed** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tweak-vs-tweed)
- **twink** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tweak-vs-twink)
- **tweaked** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tweak-vs-tweaked)
- **tea** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tea-vs-tweak)
- **tak** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tak-vs-tweak)
- **tek** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tek-vs-tweak)
- **TWA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/twa-vs-tweak)
- **team** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/team-vs-tweak)
- **tear** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tear-vs-tweak)
- **trek** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/trek-vs-tweak)
- **twat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/twat-vs-tweak)
- **teal** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/teal-vs-tweak)
- **teas** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/teas-vs-tweak)
- **Thea** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/thea-vs-tweak)
- **teak** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/teak-vs-tweak)
- **treat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/treat-vs-tweak)
- **tread** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/tread-vs-tweak)

## Common misspellings (7)
`tewak`, `ttweak`, `twaek`, `tweakk`, `tweka`, `twweak`, `wteak`

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