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to tweak

to tweak

7 4.1
To pinch or squeeze sharply with your fingers
  • verb
  • /twik/
translation icon : pellizcar
  • Yet it was more fun to tweak Moiraine's nose.

Not one of these mini HDMI ports, micro HDMI ports where you have to put an adapter on there and then you're worried you're going to tweak the port.

Examples

  • Johnson frowns and confides he's had a few injuries, a sore Achilles tendon, and a tweaked knee.

    Blog text (25)
  • I suppose we could tweak his tail a smidge.

  • The practitioner tweaked his nose.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Don't go tweaking his nose anymore.

  • And then, I'm gonna take my athletic son to the doctor to check out the ankle he tweaked running yesterday.

  • "Maybe," Clayton agreed and tweaked the end of her nose.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • He lifts too heavy and he tweaked his back.

  • Margie squealed, as if maybe Pop had tweaked her ear.

    Blog text (17)
  • "What about me?" George teased, and then he tweaked Fannie's nose and snuck a little piece of candy to Alexis.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • He gently tweaked her nose to make her laugh.

Synonyms

to squeeze
vsto tweak
119 1.6

To press something firmly with your hand or fingers

is more sudden and sharp in force than a firm press

Antonyms

1.8

To let someone or something go free from being held

88 1.0

Make something less tight so it can move or open

Compounds

tweak freak
  • Informal
9.9

A person who keeps making small changes to make things better

How Hard

to wrench
33 4.2
twist
51 2.4
to pinch
57 1.8
to tweak
7 4.1
to nip
55 4.6

Surface Forms

tweak infinitive
tweaked past
tweaked past participle
tweaking present participle
tweaks third person singular

Etymology

Tweak comes from an old idea of giving a quick finger 'twist' or pinch, and it is like the words twist and twitch. So to tweak someone's nose is to give it a sharp pinch or small twist.