wiggle

English

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle English wiglen, probably from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle Dutch wigelen (“to wiggle”) and perhaps (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle Low German wigelen, frequentative of wiegen (“to rock”), from wiege (“cradle”). See wain, and Dutch wieg (“cradle”).

Cognate to Dutch wiggelen (“to wiggle”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwɪɡ.l/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: wig‧gle

Verb

1. (transitive, intransitive) To move with irregular, back and forward or side to side motions; To shake or jiggle.

   Her hips wiggle as she walks.

   The jelly wiggles on the plate when you move it.

Translations

to move with irregular motions

• Danish: vrikke
• Dutch: wiebelen (nl)
• Finnish: tytistä, hytistä (fi), tutista (fi), hytkyä, hyllyä (intransitive); hytisyttää, tutisuttaa, hytkyttää (transitive)
• French: frétiller (fr), se tortiller
• Georgian: ქნევა (kneva), ქიცინი (kicini) (especially for dog's tail)
• German: schlängeln (de), schwänzeln (de), wackeln (de)
• Hungarian: ficánkol (hu), ring (hu), ringatózik (hu), hullámzik (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Maori: pīonioni
• Norwegian: vrikke
• Portuguese: rebolar (pt), sacolejar
• Russian: покачивать (ru) (pokačivatʹ), раскачиваться (ru) (raskačivatʹsja)
• Spanish: menear (es), contonear (es)
• Swedish: vicka (sv)

Noun

wiggle (plural wiggles)

1. A rapid movement in alternating opposite directions, not necessarily regular.

   She walked with a sexy wiggle.

2. (figurative) An alternating state or characteristic. (Can we add an example for this sense?)
3. (in the plural) See wiggles.

Translations

wiggling movement

• Danish: vrikken n
• Finnish: tutina, hytinä, hytke
• Norwegian: vrikk n
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Portuguese: rebolado (pt)
• Russian: покачивание (ru) n (pokačivanije)

Derived terms

Terms derived from the noun or verb wiggle

• get a wiggle on

• wiggle room

• wiggly