To writhe means to twist your body with sharp, vigorous movements, usually because you're in pain, discomfort, or trying to break free from something. Picture a fish flopping on a dock, its body bending and twisting frantically. That's writhing.

When someone writhes in pain, their body contorts and squirms involuntarily. A person with a terrible stomachache might writhe on the floor. A character in an adventure story might writhe in the grip of a giant snake, struggling to escape its coils. Athletes sometimes writhe on the field after an injury, their bodies reacting to intense pain before they can control themselves.

The word captures a particular quality of movement: desperate, uncomfortable, almost violent twisting. You wouldn't say someone writhes while doing yoga stretches or dancing. The word implies struggle and distress. You might also hear it used dramatically: a student might say they were writhing in their seat during a boring assembly, meaning they couldn't sit still and felt trapped by tedium, though that's an exaggeration compared to actual physical writhing.