cringey

adjective

ˈkrin-jē 

variants or less commonly cringe-y or cringy

informal

: tending to cause one to cringe (as out of embarrassment or discomfort) : cringeworthy

By the end of the book Ford has run through at least eight motels/hotels/tepees … and five cringey references to "making love": it can wear a person out.

—Susannah Meadows

Not every moment of my freshman college experience has been cringey.

—Juliette Carey

Even though parts of Trudeau's speech may feel cringe-y to some Canadians, it's pretty understandable how an American audience could feel thirsty for a leader preaching "friendship" and "love."

—Allison Tierney

also : inclined to cringe

The things I've written that make me cringe … . I feel cringey whenever I read passionate old essays of mine.

—Elizabeth Gilbert

Examples of cringey in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But in a movie that ends up being quite cringey, those honorable intentions don’t add up to much. —Will Leitch, Vulture, 1 July 2024

No less charming is the central, slow-building relationship between Nicholson’s rascal bachelor Harry and Keaton’s prim playwright Erica (although the fact that the movie starts out with Harry dating Erica’s daughter—played by Amanda Peet—is pretty cringey, to be sure). —Vogue, 10 Sep. 2024

His dance moves are cringey, but dousing himself in water gets him cheers. —Emma Soren, Vulture, 14 May 2024

These scenes are cringey and absurd, but there’s something compelling about choosing the conditions of your own humiliation — and having some fun with it. —Beatrice Loayza, New York Times, 8 Oct. 2023

Fem-tech brands (like pelvic floor trainer Elvie or smart breast pump Willow) have helped, filling what was once a white space and spurring conversation by creating products that address an oft-unspoken need and, just as importantly, aren’t cringey to buy. —Fiorella Valdesolo, Vogue, 19 Jan. 2022

Despite a lifetime of rooting for abject (or near abject) teams—the New York Knicks, the Oakland A’s, the Buffalo Bills—there was always something cringey about rooting for the USMNT. —Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 29 Nov. 2022

And if hugging a tree or smelling the dirt feels unnatural and cringey to you, find a different way. —Madeline Holcombe, CNN, 22 Apr. 2022

Who's ready for another super-cringey resort vacation? —Dalton Ross, EW.com, 10 Aug. 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1986, in the meaning defined above