Writhe : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: Writhe	by the DICT Development Group
3 results for Writhe
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
writhe v to move in a twisting or contorted motion, (especially when struggling); "The prisoner writhed in discomfort"; "The child tried to wriggle free from his aunt's embrace" Synonym(s): writhe, wrestle, wriggle, worm, squirm, twist
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Writhe \Writhe\, v. t. [imp. {Writhed}; p. p. {Writhed}, Obs. or Poetic {Writhen}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Writhing}.] [OE. writhen, AS. wr[c6][?]an to twist; akin to OHG. r[c6]dan, Icel. r[c6][?]a, Sw. vrida, Dan. vride. Cf. {Wreathe}, {Wrest}, {Wroth}.] 1. To twist; to turn; now, usually, to twist or turn so as to distort; to wring. [bd]With writhing [turning] of a pin.[b8] --Chaucer. Then Satan first knew pain, And writhed him to and fro. --Milton. Her mouth she writhed, her forehead taught to frown. --Dryden. His battle-writhen arms, and mighty hands. --Tennyson. 2. To wrest; to distort; to pervert. The reason which he yieldeth showeth the least part of his meaning to be that whereunto his words are writhed. --Hooker. 3. To extort; to wring; to wrest. [R.]
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Writhe \Writhe\, v. i. To twist or contort the body; to be distorted; as, to writhe with agony. Also used figuratively. After every attempt, he felt that he had failed, and writhed with shame and vexation. --Macaulay.