/ flɪntʃ; NAmE / verb
[ v ] flinch (at sth) | flinch (away) to make a sudden movement with your face or body as a result of pain, fear, surprise, etc. :
He flinched at the sight of the blood.
She flinched away from the dog.
He met my gaze without flinching.
—see also unflinching
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- flinch from sth | flinch from doing sth
••
WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent. (in the sense slink or sneak off ): from Old French flenchir turn aside, of West Germanic origin and related to German lenken to guide, steer.