cringe

Cringe means embarrassing, awkward or uncomfortable to watch. As slang, it’s used as an adjective, “that’s so cringe,” for anything that makes you wince on someone’s behalf.

What does cringe mean?

To cringe is to flinch or recoil, and the slang meaning grows out of that physical reaction. Something cringe is so awkward, try-hard or out of touch that you feel secondhand embarrassment: a brand using teen slang badly, an overly dramatic post, or your own old photos.

It can describe a person (“he’s cringe”), a thing (“cringe video”) or a moment (“that was cringe”). Often it’s affectionate: people happily admit their favourite songs or hobbies are a little cringe.

How to use cringe

• “My teacher said ‘no cap’ in class. So cringe.”
• “Reading my old tweets is pure cringe.”
• “That proposal video was cringe but kind of sweet.”
• “Being cringe is free, do what you love.”

Cringe vs. based

In online slang, cringe and based are often used as opposites: based is boldly admirable, cringe is embarrassing. “Based or cringe?” is a common way to judge an opinion.

Where cringe comes from

The verb “cringe” is centuries old. The slang adjective is newer: Merriam-Webster dates it to 1983. It took off online in the 2010s, along with related words like “cringey” and “cringeworthy.”

Related terms

• Based: boldly yourself, the opposite of cringe.
• Mid: mediocre.
• Try-hard: someone who tries too hard.
• Ick: a sudden feeling of being turned off by someone.

See more terms like this in our Gen Z slang dictionary.