Library / English Dictionary

TWITCH

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A sudden muscle spasm; especially one caused by a nervous condition

Synonyms:

twitch; twitching; vellication

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("twitch" is a kind of...):

cramp; muscle spasm; spasm (a painful and involuntary muscular contraction)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "twitch"):

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)

Derivation:

twitch (make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion)

twitch (move with abrupt, seemingly uncontrolled motions)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion

Example:

his face is twitching

Synonyms:

jerk; twitch

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Hypernyms (to "twitch" is one way to...):

move involuntarily; move reflexively (move in an uncontrolled manner)

Verb group:

jerk; twitch (move with abrupt, seemingly uncontrolled motions)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "twitch"):

fibrillate (make fine, irregular, rapid twitching movements)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody's (body part) ----s

Derivation:

twitch; twitching (a sudden muscle spasm; especially one caused by a nervous condition)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Move or pull with a sudden motion

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "twitch" is one way to...):

draw; pull (cause to move by pulling)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "twitch"):

skitter (twitch the hook of a fishing line through or along the surface of water)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP

Sense 3

Meaning:

Squeeze tightly between the fingers

Example:

She squeezed the bottle

Synonyms:

nip; pinch; squeeze; tweet; twinge; twitch

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "twitch" is one way to...):

grip (hold fast or firmly)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "twitch"):

goose (pinch in the buttocks)

tweak (pinch or squeeze sharply)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Sense 4

Meaning:

Move with abrupt, seemingly uncontrolled motions

Example:

The patient's legs were jerkings

Synonyms:

jerk; twitch

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "twitch" is one way to...):

move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)

Verb group:

jerk; twitch (make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

twitch; twitching (a sudden muscle spasm; especially one caused by a nervous condition)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Toss with a sharp movement so as to cause to turn over in the air

Synonyms:

flip; twitch

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "twitch" is one way to...):

move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something

Credits

 Context examples: 

He spoke now with a feverish energy, the long hands twitching and jerking as he motioned me away.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Skeletal muscle fibers having high myofibrillar ATPase activity, high glycolytic enzyme activities, and an intermediate glycogen content which produce a fast twitch.

(Muscle Fibers, Fast-Twitch, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

Careful administration of very small doses of toxin can restrict its action locally to reduce overactive muscles, such as those involved in twitching of the eyes.

(Botulin Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

His face was ghastly white, twitching with suppressed pain. He looked very sick.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

When they halted, it halted, throwing up its head and regarding them steadily with nostrils that twitched as it caught and studied the scent of them.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

Fasciculations can often by visualized and take the form of a muscle twitch or dimpling under the skin, but usually do not generate sufficient force to move a limb.

(Fasciculation, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

At this solemn indictment the novice raised his hand and twitched his lip, while even the placid senior brothers glanced across at each other and coughed to cover their amusement.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Right in the middle there lay the body of a man sorely contorted and still twitching.

(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Symptoms include muscle weakness, wasting, twitching, trouble swallowing, and slowly becoming paralyzed.

(Motor neuron disease, NCI Dictionary)

Hitherto his orgies had always been confined to one day, and he had come back, twitching and shattered, in the evening.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)