flinched; flinching; flinches
: to withdraw or shrink from or as if from pain : wince
He flinched when he was presented with the car repair bill.
also
: to tense the muscles involuntarily in anticipation of discomfort
I cannot help flinching when I hear the dentist's drill.
flinch
noun
flincher
noun
Examples of flinch in a Sentence
He flinched when I tapped him on the shoulder.
She met danger without flinching.
The bill was much higher than expected, but he paid it without flinching.
Recent Examples on the Web
But thousands of miles away, executives at China’s leading autonomous driving firms didn’t flinch.
—
IEEE Spectrum, 15 July 2025
Sipp slightly flinched his left arm before throwing a pitch to Emmanuel Burriss, allowing Miguel Tejada to score and sending San Francisco to its fourth straight win.
—Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2025
Judge Subramanian didn’t flinch, siding with the government.
—Danielle Bacher, People.com, 3 July 2025
When the conversation turned to the metaphorical messes — like heartbreak — the 54-year-old didn’t flinch.
—Amber Corrine, VIBE.com, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for flinch
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IEEE Spectrum, 15 July 2025
Sipp slightly flinched his left arm before throwing a pitch to Emmanuel Burriss, allowing Miguel Tejada to score and sending San Francisco to its fourth straight win.
—Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2025
Judge Subramanian didn’t flinch, siding with the government.
—Danielle Bacher, People.com, 3 July 2025
When the conversation turned to the metaphorical messes — like heartbreak — the 54-year-old didn’t flinch.
—Amber Corrine, VIBE.com, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for flinch
Cite this Entry
“Flinch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flinch. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
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