quail

verb

Definition of quailnext
1
as in to recoil
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

Relevance

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How is the word quail distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of quail are blench, flinch, recoil, shrink, and wince. While all these words mean "to draw back in fear or distaste," quail suggests shrinking and cowering in fear.

quailed before the apparition

When is it sensible to use blench instead of quail?

Although the words blench and quail have much in common, blench implies fainthearted flinching.

stood their ground without blenching

Where would flinch be a reasonable alternative to quail?

The meanings of flinch and quail largely overlap; however, flinch implies a failure to endure pain or face something dangerous or frightening with resolution.

faced her accusers without flinching

When would recoil be a good substitute for quail?

The synonyms recoil and quail are sometimes interchangeable, but recoil implies a start or movement away through shock, fear, or disgust.

recoiled at the suggestion of stealing

When could shrink be used to replace quail?

In some situations, the words shrink and quail are roughly equivalent. However, shrink suggests an instinctive recoil through sensitiveness, scrupulousness, or cowardice.

shrank from the unpleasant truth

When can wince be used instead of quail?

The words wince and quail can be used in similar contexts, but wince suggests a slight involuntary physical reaction (such as a start or recoiling).

winced in pain

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for quail
  1. recoil
  2. cringe
  3. flinch
  4. wince
Verb
  • In a clip shared by Variety, Stone noticed and pointed to a bee flying just overhead, and subsequently stopped posing to recoil with a laugh.
    — Bailey Richards, People.com, 17 May 2025
  • That heartbreak reverberated across the Charlotte region as arts and culture groups recoiled at the cuts and what might come next.
    — Desiree Mathurin, Charlotte Observer, 13 May 2025
Definition of recoil
Verb
  • Over the past few years, generational warfare has only ramped up—so much so that it’s become boring to even reference: Gen Z hating on millennials for being cringe, millennials hating on Gen Z for being puritanical, and everyone hating on boomers for being, well, boomers.
    — Daisy Jones, Vogue, 3 May 2025
  • Even for some Republicans who would like to see more babies and larger families, the whole pro-natalist push is cringe in a bad way.
    — Emily Brooks, The Hill, 1 May 2025
Definition of cringe
Verb
  • Tamar Braxton has never been one to flinch at the truth.
    — Shelby Stewart, Essence, 5 May 2025
  • But rookie Gwyneth Philips hasn’t flinched in Maschmeyer’s absence.
    — Carol Schram, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025
Definition of flinch
Verb
  • Others lowered themselves from a ladder, wincing all the way.
    — Julia Whelan Emma Kehlbeck Jeremy McLennan, New York Times, 2 May 2025
  • As the trailer depicts, the shame of his past follows him into Thunderbolts*, with the character wincing over bad press about him in the newspaper.
    — Randall Colburn, EW.com, 2 May 2025
Definition of wince
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.

Browse Nearby Words

quai
quail
quailed
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Quail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quail. Accessed 22 May. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on quail

Nglish: Translation of quail for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about quail

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Using Bullet Points ( • )

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Homophones, Homographs, and Homonyms

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

10 Hella Good U.S. Regionalisms

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things
See More

Popular

See More

Using Bullet Points ( • )

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

10 Hella Good U.S. Regionalisms
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
banana-mirrored
Contradictory Words Quiz Pick out which word means one thing…and the opp...
See All