wriggle
/ˈɹɪɡəl/verb, noun
wriggle is spelled W-R-I-G-G-L-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 47,633rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, wriggle means “To twist one's body to and fro with short, writhing motions; to squirm” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in wriggle?
| Letters | 7: W-R-I-G-G-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 47,633rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is wriggle?
Wriggle appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 47,633rd 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 wriggle?
- /ˈɹɪɡəl/
Wriggle has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-wriggle.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with wriggle?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as wriggle.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: wiggler.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of wriggle
- wriggles present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- wriggling participle, present
- wriggled participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does wriggle mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To twist one's body to and fro with short, writhing motions; to squirm.
Teachers often lose their patience when children wriggle in their seats.
- 2
To cause something to wriggle.
He was sitting on the lawn, wriggling his toes in the grass.
- 3
To use crooked or devious means.
noun
- 1
A wriggling movement.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Wriggle in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | remuer, se tortiller |
| German | sich winden, sich schlängeln, zappeln |
| Portuguese | contorcer-se , contorcer |
| Spanish | retorcerse, serpentear |
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 wriggle come from?
From wrig + -le (frequentative suffix). Compare Dutch wriggelen (“to wriggle, squirm”), Low German wriggeln (“to wriggle”). Related to Old English wrigian (“to turn, wend, hie, go move”), from Proto-Germanic *wrigōną (“to wriggle”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).