twitch

Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

Related to twitch: Muscle twitch

twitch

(twĭch)

v. twitched, twitch·ing, twitch·es

v.tr.

To draw, pull, or move suddenly and sharply; jerk: I twitched my fishing line.

v.intr.

1. To move jerkily or spasmodically.

2. To ache sharply from time to time; twinge.

1. A sudden involuntary or spasmodic muscular movement: a twitch of the eye.

2. A sudden pulling; a tug: The fish gave my line a twitch.

3. A sudden, sharp pain.

[Middle English twicchen; possibly akin to Low German twikken.]

twitch′ing·ly adv.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

twitch

(twɪtʃ)

1. to move or cause to move in a jerky spasmodic way

2. (tr) to pull or draw (something) with a quick jerky movement

3. (intr) to hurt with a sharp spasmodic pain

4. (tr) rare to nip

5. a sharp jerking movement

6. a mental or physical twinge

7. (Medicine) a sudden muscular spasm, esp one caused by a nervous condition. Compare tic

8. (Horse Training, Riding & Manège) a loop of cord used to control a horse by drawing it tight about its upper lip

[Old English twiccian to pluck; related to Old High German zwecchōn to pinch, Dutch twicken]

ˈtwitching adj, n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

twitch

(twɪtʃ)

v.t.

1. to tug or pull at with a quick, short movement; pluck.

2. to jerk rapidly.

3. to move (a part of the body) with a sudden, jerking motion.

4. to pinch or pull at sharply and painfully; give a smarting pinch to; nip.

v.i.

5. to move spasmodically or convulsively; jerk; jump.

6. to give a sharp, sudden pull; tug; pluck (usu. fol. by at).

7. to ache or hurt with a sharp, shooting pain; twinge.

8. a quick, jerky movement of the body or of some part of it.

9. involuntary, spasmodic movement of a muscle; tic.

10. a bodily or mental twinge, as of pain, conscience, etc.; pang.

[1125–75; Middle English twicchen; akin to Old English twiccian to pluck]

twitch′er, n.

twitch

Past participle: twitched
Gerund: twitching

Imperative
twitch
twitch

Present
I twitch
you twitch
he/she/it twitches
we twitch
you twitch
they twitch

Preterite
I twitched
you twitched
he/she/it twitched
we twitched
you twitched
they twitched

Present Continuous
I am twitching
you are twitching
he/she/it is twitching
we are twitching
you are twitching
they are twitching

Present Perfect
I have twitched
you have twitched
he/she/it has twitched
we have twitched
you have twitched
they have twitched

Past Continuous
I was twitching
you were twitching
he/she/it was twitching
we were twitching
you were twitching
they were twitching

Past Perfect
I had twitched
you had twitched
he/she/it had twitched
we had twitched
you had twitched
they had twitched

Future
I will twitch
you will twitch
he/she/it will twitch
we will twitch
you will twitch
they will twitch

Future Perfect
I will have twitched
you will have twitched
he/she/it will have twitched
we will have twitched
you will have twitched
they will have twitched

Future Continuous
I will be twitching
you will be twitching
he/she/it will be twitching
we will be twitching
you will be twitching
they will be twitching

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been twitching
you have been twitching
he/she/it has been twitching
we have been twitching
you have been twitching
they have been twitching

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been twitching
you will have been twitching
he/she/it will have been twitching
we will have been twitching
you will have been twitching
they will have been twitching

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been twitching
you had been twitching
he/she/it had been twitching
we had been twitching
you had been twitching
they had been twitching

Conditional
I would twitch
you would twitch
he/she/it would twitch
we would twitch
you would twitch
they would twitch

Past Conditional
I would have twitched
you would have twitched
he/she/it would have twitched
we would have twitched
you would have twitched
they would have twitched

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Noun	1.	twitch - a sudden muscle spasm; especially one caused by a nervous condition twitching, vellication cramp, muscle spasm, spasm - a painful and involuntary muscular contraction tic - a local and habitual twitching especially in the face blepharism - condition in which a person blinks continuously fibrillation - muscular twitching involving individual muscle fibers acting without coordination fasciculation - muscular twitching of contiguous groups of muscle fibers
Verb	1.	twitch - make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion; "his face is twitching" jerk fibrillate - make fine, irregular, rapid twitching movements; "His heart fibrillated and he died" move involuntarily, move reflexively - move in an uncontrolled manner jerk, twitch - move with abrupt, seemingly uncontrolled motions; "The patient's legs were jerkings"
	2.	twitch - move with abrupt, seemingly uncontrolled motions; "The patient's legs were jerkings" jerk twitch, jerk - make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion; "his face is twitching" move - move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion; "He moved his hand slightly to the right"
	3.	twitch - toss with a sharp movement so as to cause to turn over in the air flip move - move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion; "He moved his hand slightly to the right"
	4.	twitch - squeeze tightly between the fingers; "He pinched her behind"; "She squeezed the bottle" nip, pinch, tweet, twinge, squeeze grip - hold fast or firmly; "He gripped the steering wheel" goose - pinch in the buttocks; "he goosed the unsuspecting girl" tweak - pinch or squeeze sharply
	5.	twitch - move or pull with a sudden motion draw, pull, force - cause to move by pulling; "draw a wagon"; "pull a sled" skitter - twitch the hook of a fishing line through or along the surface of water

twitch

verb

1. jerk, blink, flutter, jump, squirm His left eyelid twitched involuntarily.

2. pull (at), snatch (at), tug (at), pluck (at), yank (at) He twitched his curtains to check on callers.

noun

1. jerk, tic, spasm, twinge, jump, blink, flutter, tremor He developed a nervous twitch.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

twitch

verb

To move or cause to move with a sudden abrupt motion:

jerk, lurch, snap, wrench, yank.

noun

1. A nervous shaking of the body:

quake, quiver, shake, shiver, shudder, thrill, tic, tremor.

2. A sudden motion, such as a pull:

jerk, lurch, snap, tug, wrench, yank.

Translations

حَرَكَةٌ عَصَبِيَّهيَشُدُّ بِحَرَكَةٍ عَصَبِيَّهيَنْتَفِض، يَرْتَعِش

škubatškubnutízatahat

rykketrækning

Zucken zupfen

tirer

rángatrángató zik

kippast/rykkjast tilkippur, rykkurrykkja, kippa

contrazione dare uno strappo strappo tic torcere

truktelėti

paraustīšanaparaustītraustīšanaraustīšanāsraustīt

mykať

çekiştirmekseğirmeseğirmektitremetitremek

抽动抽搐轻扯

twitch

[twɪtʃ]

A. N

1. (= slight pull) → tirón m
to give sth a twitch → dar un tirón a algo

2. (= nervous tic) → tic m, contracción f nerviosa

B. VI [hands, face, muscles] → crisparse; [nose, ears, tail] → moverse nerviosamente

C. VT [+ curtains, rope] → pegar un tirón de; [+ hands] → crispar, retorcer; [+ nose, ears etc] → mover nerviosamente
to twitch sth away from sb → quitar algo a algn con un movimiento rápido

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

twitch

[ˈtwɪtʃ]

n (nervous) → tic m
She has a twitch in her right eye → Elle a un tic à l'œil droit.

[body, lips, cheek, hands] → se contracter (nerveusement); [eye, eyebrow] → trembler (nerveusement)

[curtains] → bouger

twitch

(= tic) → Zucken nt; (= individual spasm) → Zuckung f; to give a twitch → zucken

(= pull) → Ruck m (→ of an +dat); to give something a twitch → an etw (dat) → rucken

vi (face, muscles) → zucken; the cat’s nose twitched when I brought in the fish → die Katze schnupperte, als ich den Fisch hereinbrachte

tail, ears, nose, eyebrows → zucken mit

(= pull) → zupfen; he twitched the letter from her hands → er schnappte ihr den Brief aus den Händen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

twitch

[twɪtʃ]

1. n (slight pull) → tiratina; (nervous) → tic m inv
to give sth a twitch → dare una tiratina a qc

2. vi (hands, face, muscles) → contrarsi; (person, in particular situation) → agitarsi; (habitually) → avere un tic; (tail, ears) → drizzarsi; (nose) → muoversi

3. vt (rope, sleeve) → tirare
he twitched the letter out of her hand → le sfilò la lettera dalle mani
the dog twitched its ears → il cane drizzò le orecchie
the rabbit twitched its nose → il coniglio arricciò il naso

twitch

(twitʃ) verb

1. to (cause to) move jerkily. His hands were twitching.

2. to give a little pull or jerk to (something). He twitched her sleeve.

noun

a twitching movement.

twitch

n. tic nervioso espasmódico; sacudida.

twitch

n tic m, sacudida (muscular), contracción breve e involuntaria de un músculo

References in classic literature ?

His brows knit together into a wedgelike furrow, and with a twitch of pain he bit his underlip.

A tattered lace handkerchief twitched in her fingers.

The elder woman grew pale beneath the coarse powder that daubed her cheeks, and her dry lips twitched with a spasm of pain.

View in context

Suddenly the broad muscles and lines of the count's face began to twitch. The twitching increased, the handsome mouth was drawn to one side (only now did Pierre realize how near death his father was), and from that distorted mouth issued an indistinct, hoarse sound.

View in context

Joe gave a pull at his necktie and a twitch at his jacket, and was off in a moment.

View in context

Their ears twitched in their sleep, and they were restless.

View in context

A white cat was staring at some gold-fish; she sat very, very still, but now and then the tip of her tail twitched as if it were alive.

View in context

As he talked his left eyelid twitched. Later when he drove back home and when night came on and the stars came out it was harder to get back the old feeling of a close and personal God who lived in the sky overhead and who might at any moment reach out his hand, touch him on the shoulder, and appoint for him some heroic task to be done.

The whole left side of his face twitched and his hand on the boy's shoulder twitched also.

View in context

He had not only twitched his shoulder but clenched his fist, as if tempted to use it.

View in context

She looked all round the room in a glaring manner, and then said, leaning on me while her hand twitched my shoulder, "Come, come, come!

She was not physically strong, and after a little time said, "Slower!" Still, we went at an impatient fitful speed, and as we went, she twitched the hand upon my shoulder, and worked her mouth, and led me to believe that we were going fast because her thoughts went fast.