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cringeworthy

cringeworthy

1 6.3
Makes people feel embarrassed and awkward
  • adjective
  • /ˈkrɪnʤˌwɜrði/
  • Informal
translation icon : vergonzoso
  • John Franco, Armando Benitez, Braden Looper, and Billy Wagner all gave away games in cringeworthy fashion.

Examples

  • I happen to agree with everything he said, even finding some moments of the show cringeworthy (my opinion, don't hate me).

    Blog text (20)
  • His attempt to dance at the party was so cringeworthy that everyone felt embarrassed for him.

  • No doubt, the debate was frustrating, even cringeworthy.

    Blog text (32)
  • That Radiolab was a pretty cringeworthy piece.

    Blog text (22)
  • The same goes for these cringeworthy 'SEOs' Rand describes.

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  • Luke Cage's blaxploitation origins are a bit cringeworthy to read.

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  • His feeble attempts at trying to come across as humorous and interesting are beyond nauseating and cringeworthy.

    Blog text (7)
  • Watching them snuggle and cavort onscreen might feel cringeworthy, or even make fans sad, knowing that outside of the Twilight world, the stars' love was busted by infidelity.

    Blog text (30)
  • The movie was filled with cringeworthy moments that made the audience squirm in their seats.

  • She told a cringeworthy joke that made everyone uncomfortable instead of laughing.

Synonyms

embarrassing
vscringeworthy
496 2.4

Making someone feel awkward or ashamed

focuses on provoking a stronger visible reaction than plain unease
awkward
vscringeworthy
311 2.7

Feeling embarrassed or uncomfortable in social situations

focuses on causing shame in others rather than a personal feeling
mortifying
vscringeworthy
7 7.0

Making someone feel very embarrassed or ashamed

is milder causing unease but not deep shame
cringe-worthy
vscringeworthy
  • Informal
4 7.3

Making you feel embarrassed or awkward

has identical meaning but is written without a hyphen
cringey
vscringeworthy
  • Slang
8.4

Makes you feel embarrassed because it seems awkward or fake

is more neutral and used across formal and informal contexts

Antonyms

494 1.0

Not feeling pain or physical discomfort

How Embarrassing

mortifying
7 7.0
humiliating
  • Offensive
80 4.5
cringeworthy
  • Informal
1 6.3
embarrassing
496 2.4
awkward
61 3.3

Surface Forms

cringeworthy positive

Morphology

cringeworthy = cringe (transparent) = cringe + worthy

Formed by combining 'cringe' with the productive adjective-forming element '-worthy' meaning 'deserving of' or 'causing', so the sense is directly inferable.

Etymology

Cringeworthy joins cringe and worthy. Cringe means 'to pull back in embarrassment' and worthy means 'deserving', so something cringeworthy is 'deserving a cringe' and makes you feel awkward or embarrassed.