Flinch
/flɪnt͡ʃ/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Moderate ·High school level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A reflexive jerking away.
"My eye doctor hates the flinch I have every time he tries to get near my eyes."
- 2 a reflex response to sudden pain wordnet
- 3 The slipping of the foot from a ball, when attempting to give a tight croquet.
Verb
- 1 To make a sudden, involuntary movement in response to a (usually negative) stimulus; to cringe; to blench. intransitive
"A child, by a constant course of kindness, may be accustomed to bear very rough usage without flinching or complaining."
- 2 Alternative form of flense. alt-of, alternative
- 3 draw back, as with fear or pain wordnet
- 4 To dodge (a question), to avoid an unpleasant task or duty
- 5 To let the foot slip from a ball, when attempting to give a tight croquet.
Example
More examples"He is not such a man as to flinch from danger."
Etymology
From Middle French flenchir (“to bend”), of Germanic origin. Compare Middle High German lenken (“to bend”). Attested in English since the 16th century.