wriggle

Universal Words verb, noun verb 1 ~ (about / around) to twist and turn your body or part of it with quick short movements: [V] The baby was wriggling around on my lap. * [VN] She wriggled her toes. 2 [usually +adv./prep.] to move somewhere by twisting and turning your body or part of it: [V] The fish wriggled out of my fingers. * [V-ADJ] She managed to wriggle free. * [VN] They wriggled their way through the tunnel. * He wriggled himself into a comfortable position. PHRASALVERBS wriggle out of sth / out of doing sth (informal, disapproving) to avoid doing sth that you should do, especially by thinking of clever excuses: He tried desperately to wriggle out of giving a clear answer. noun [usuallysing.] an act of wriggling