flinch
To make a small, sudden movement because of pain, fear or surprise.
- Ben tried not to flinch as the nurse cleaned the graze on his knee.
- Maya did not flinch when the balloon popped right beside her ear.
Similar: jump, jerk, shrink
flinch or cringe?
A flinch is a quick jerk, over in a moment. A cringe is a squirm that lingers, usually from embarrassment.
Both words describe the body pulling away from something unpleasant, so they get used as if they were the same. They are not the same movement.
Flinching is a reflex. When a football flies towards your face in PE, you flinch before you have even thought about it. It is small, sudden and finished in a split second, and it can be caused by pain, fear or plain surprise.
Cringing is slower and lasts longer. When a parent starts dancing at the school disco, their child cringes: shoulders hunched, face screwed up, wishing they could disappear. Cringe can be about something frightening too, but it is most often about embarrassment.
Both words, side by side
cringe
To shrink back or squirm because something is scary or embarrassing.
- Mia cringed as Dad started dancing in front of her whole class.
- The squeak of chalk on the board made the whole class cringe and cover their ears.
Similar: squirm, flinch, shrink
Why it costs marks
Writers choose between these two to show how a character is feeling. A flinch shows shock or pain; a cringe usually shows embarrassment or shame. Questions about how a character feels at a certain moment often turn on exactly that difference.
Definitions and example sentences on this page are the ones a child sees inside Wordrealm, taken from our list of over 1,100 words. It is free to browse, with nothing to sign up for.
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test