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to squinch

to squinch

1 9.9
To turn your eyes inward so they look crossed
  • verb
  • /skwɪntʃ/
  • Archaic
: entornar los ojos
  • Her cheeks are streaked with red, her eyes squinched half-shut to hold back more tears.
  • squinched eyes
  • squinched his eyes shut
  • squinched her eyebrows

Examples

  • She squinched her eyes tight against the next flash and pulled our heads down to the bench when the thunder roared.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • The kid's eyes squinched shut.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • I squinched up my face.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • "Hi, babe," she said, squinching her lips in an air kiss.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • Judy squinched her eyebrows at him.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • He squinched his face up, then relaxed it into a frown.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • He squinched his eyes shut, as much, Maddy guessed, to control a suspicious glimmer of tears, as because he'd been told to.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • When the bright sunlight hits his eyes, he can't help but squinch them tightly shut.

  • To make a funny face, she would squinch her eyes and scrunch her nose.

  • In the bright light, he squinched his eyes to see better.

Synonyms

to squint
vsto squinch
18 5.2

To cross your eyes on purpose to amuse someone

looks like crossed eyes caused by misalignment rather than a real eye disorder

Surface Forms

squinch infinitive
squinched past
squinched past participle
squinching present participle
squinches third person singular

Etymology

Squinch as a verb is easy to remember if you think of squint 'look with partly closed eyes' plus a tiny 'squeeze' of the eyelids. So to squinch your eyes is to narrow or cross them by squeezing them together.