flinch
/ˈflɪnt͡ʃ/
flinch noun: a reflexive jerking away. Also the alternative form of flense.
Noun
flinch (plural flinches)
Verb
flinch (third-person singular simple present flinches, present participle flinching, simple past and past participle flinched)
- To make a sudden, involuntary movement in response to a (usually negative) stimulus; to cringe; to blench.
- A child, by a constant course of kindness, may be accustomed to bear very rough usage without flinching or complaining.1693, [John Locke], “(please specify the section number)”, in Some Thoughts Concerning Education, London: […] A[wnsham] and J[ohn] Churchill, […], →OCLC
- To dodge (a question), to avoid an unpleasant task or duty
- To let the foot slip from a ball, when attempting to give a tight croquet.
Also used as
flinch is also the alternative form of flense.
flinch meaning in Arabic
flinch in Arabic
- reflexive jerking away
- جَفَل jafal
Examples of flinch in a sentence
- He was a stone-cold killer: he didn't flinch as he took the shot.
- I want to touch him, but I'm scared he'll flinch away.
- I didn't tell my parents, but I flinched if an Asian-looking man came close.
Synonyms of flinch
Forms of flinch
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | flinches |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | flinches |
| present participle | flinching |
| past participle | flinched |
| past | flinched |
Origin of flinch
From Middle French flenchir (“to bend”), from Old French flenchir, flanchir, from Frankish *hlankijan, from Proto-Germanic *hlankijaną (“to bend, twist, flex”), from Proto-Indo-European *kleng- (“to bend, turn, wind”). Cognate with Old High German hlenken, whence Middle High German lenken (“to bend”), Modern German lenken (“to cause to veer or turn aside, steer”). Attested in English since the 16th century.
Words formed from flinch
Words that rhyme with flinch
Questions about flinch
- What does flinch mean?
- Flinch means a reflexive jerking away.
- What is flinch in Arabic?
- Flinch in Arabic is جَفَل (jafal). See Flinch meaning in Arabic.
- What part of speech is flinch?
- Flinch can be a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce flinch?
- Flinch is pronounced /ˈflɪnt͡ʃ/.
- What is the plural of flinch?
- The plural of flinch is flinches.
Words near flinch in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: flinch (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-flinch.wav.
Cite this entry: “flinch.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/flinch. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.