To cringe is also to pull back in fear from someone or something that seems powerful and dangerous:

The meaning of CRINGE is to recoil in distaste. How to use cringe in a sentence. Synonym Discussion of Cringe.

Slang. causing embarrassment or resulting in awkward discomfort; cringeworthy; cringey. Her attempt to rap at the talent show was so very cringe.

2 days ago · cringe (countable and uncountable, plural cringes) (countable) A gesture or posture of cringing (recoiling or shrinking). He glanced with a cringe at the mess on his desk.

to shrink back in fear, terror etc.

If you cringe at something, you feel embarrassed or disgusted, and perhaps show this feeling in your expression or by making a slight movement. We all cringed when she started picking up …

When you cringe, your body language shows you don't like what you see and hear. You close your eyes and grimace. You may even jerk your body away from the offensive sight or sound, …

Many English teachers cringe when their students use the word “ain't.” I always cringe when I hear that song. Just the thought of eating broccoli makes me cringe.

To cringe is also to pull back in fear from someone or something that seems powerful and dangerous:

Cringe comedy is a subgenre of comedy that derives humor from social awkwardness, guilty pleasure, self-deprecation, idiosyncratic humor, and personal distress. [1] A type of a cringe …