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# squirm

verb (squirm, squirms, squirmed, squirming); noun (a squirm)

«squirm» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. To squirm means to twist and wriggle your body because you are uncomfortable, bored or trying to get free: "The puppy squirmed out of my arms." [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#m1)
2. To squirm also means to feel very embarrassed or ashamed: "His joke made me squirm." [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#m2)

### In the lessons

In stories it shows a character's discomfort or guilt without saying it directly. In everyday school life, children squirm on the carpet or squirm when asked a hard question. Phrases: "squirm in your seat", "squirm out of" (escape from something wriggling), "make someone squirm".

### Examples

- The little boy squirmed in his chair during the long assembly. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#x1)
- The fish squirmed in the net. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#x2)
- I squirmed when Mum showed my baby photos. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#x3)
- The puppy squirmed out of my arms. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#x4)
- He squirmed with embarrassment when he forgot his lines. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#x5)
- Worms squirmed in the wet soil. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#x6)
- The tricky question made the minister squirm. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#x7)
- Instead of a dead donkey, he saw a very much alive Marionette, wriggling and squirming like an eel. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/#x8)

### Note

Regular verb: squirmed. Close words: wriggle, writhe, fidget. "Squirm" often hints at embarrassment or guilt; "wriggle" is just movement.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «squirm» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/squirm/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«squirm» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/squirm.html) on Mova free.