to convulse in pain

1 8.2

Shake suddenly and very hard because of strong pain

phrasal verb
/kənˈvəlz ɪn peɪn/

: convulsionar de dolor

He convulsed in pain the moment the hot oil splashed onto his hand.

Examples

She tried to stand, but her leg injury made her convulse in pain.
The boxer convulsed in pain after receiving a blow to the ribs.
He began to convulse in pain after the injury.
Did she convulse in pain during the procedure?
The injured player began to convulse in pain after falling awkwardly on the field.
As the doctor examined her, she started to convulse in pain from the severe abdominal cramps.
He could not speak as he continued to convulse in pain from the deep cuts on his arm.

Synonyms

to convulse

vsto convulse in pain

16 7.8

Shake hard and without control because of illness, a strong feeling, or a hit

happens specifically because of sudden intense physical pain

Antonyms

to still

18 4.2

To make quiet or calm

How Violent

to convulse in pain

1 8.2

to crumple

15 3.9

jerk

47 2.2

to flinch

64 4.1

Surface Forms

convulse in pain infinitive

convulsed in pain past

convulsed in pain past participle

convulsing in pain present participle

convulses in pain third person singular

Morphology

convulse + in + pain

The verb 'convulse' already means to shake or have involuntary muscle movements, and the prepositional phrase 'in pain' plainly indicates that the shaking is caused by pain; together they yield 'shake violently because of pain'. This is a straightforward verb + prepositional-complement composition that a learner who knows the constituent words can readily interpret, so the expression is transparent.

Etymology

Convulse in pain comes from the image of someone whose body suddenly makes a quick, strong movement — this is what convulse means — because of strong pain. So, it means 'to have sudden, uncontrolled body movements because of very strong pain'.