quailing

verb

present participle of quail
1
as in flinching
to draw back in fear, pain, or disgust we quailed when the waiter unexpectedly presented us with a hindquarter of frog's legs

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cringing
to draw back or crouch down in fearful submission brave resisters who did not quail before the tyrant's iron hand

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for quailing
  1. flinching
  2. cringing
  3. recoiling
  4. cowering
  5. wincing
Verb
  • In my experience, automation becomes commercially viable not when failures disappear, but when the system is built to handle them without flinching.
    — Shivansh Inamdar, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Amy Adams’ Anna Bowden — who has a complicated history with Max as his former lawyer — peeks through the curtain to spy on him, flinching as Max insists on snapping his own broken finger into place.
    — Benjamin VanHoose, PEOPLE, 6 July 2026
Definition of flinching
Verb
  • Tonally, there’s something quite fascinating about a man looking back on his late teenage years and cringing while still seeing a part of himself.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 19 Sep. 2026
  • More comics from Life Kit Still cringing about that awkward moment?
    — Navied Mahdavian, NPR, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of cringing
Verb
  • But some lawmakers on Capitol Hill who would write the laws regulating the industry are recoiling at the suggestion of an antitrust carveout.
    — Garrett Downs, CNBC, 30 Sep. 2026
  • All of these features make for a wonderfully light-recoiling shotgun.
    — Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of recoiling
Verb
  • The prosecution said the trajectory of the bullet showed that Jean was either getting up from his couch or cowering when Guyger fired at him.
    — Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Hansen strides into frame and asks the cowering man what his fate should be.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of cowering
Verb
  • While uptight Elinor excels at hiding her feelings for the similarly taciturn Edward, Marianne goes wild (nearly feral, really) when new neighbor Willoughby saves her from physical injury (literally sweeping her off her feet and a wincing ankle).
    — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Driver Danya Lloyd-Santiago says her wallet is wincing this Labor Day, while filling up her tank for her commute.
    — Darius Johnson, CBS News, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of wincing
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Quailing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quailing. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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