Meaning of cringey-ness | Babel Free

Definitions

Noun. [C1]

Examples

“I checked with Zac, and as the photographer snapped away, I made a heart shape⟳ with my hands at the camera for old time’s sake. / As the picture got projected up, I continued to ignore⟳ Luke’s ever-growing scowl. That’s what happens when a player gets played. / Zac nudged me in the ribs – I tensed any muscle I knew how to move⟳. His dad was striding over. / Mr Lutas nodded up at the photo. / “I can’t believe⟳ you’d do that.” / Uh-oh. My heart-shaped cringey-ness didn’t seem as funny four-metres high. I wished both the real me and the giant photo me would disappear⟳.”

“I’m a middle-age guy who analyzes politics for a living. My wife and I have⟳ two kids a little bit younger than you all. One is in college and one is supposed to start⟳ this fall⟳ (God willing). Since I’m an old codger who doesn’t use⟳ social media, I asked them for their thoughts on what makes a good graduation address. Their response: “Keep⟳ it short. Make⟳ it useful. Don’t be super cringey.” […] Don’t be super cringey. A little cringey-ness is to be expected in politics.”

“At a hip grocery store, Maggie meets David (Kelvin Harrison Jr., from “Waves”), a handsome singer-songwriter with a rockin’ MOR vibe, and the two have⟳ a “High Fidelity” music-geek convo that dances on the edge of cringey-ness. She doesn’t like⟳ “Hotel California” (“The Eagles are hokey, and Don Henley is a very mean⟳ man. … It’s like⟳ the ‘Brown-Eyed Girl’ of Southern California soft rock”), and he doesn’t know⟳ who Sam Cooke is—or at least he pretends not to, until she catches him crooning “You Send⟳ Me” in the grocery parking lot, at which point⟳ Sam Cooke takes over as the film’s Signifier of Musical Integrity.”

“Another type⟳ of toxic habit is rumination. This occurs when you think⟳ about something over and over again, usually because of anxiety or because you’re trying to figure⟳ out a solution to some negative circumstance. But although learning from the past can be healthy in helping us to learn⟳ from past mistakes, there’s a difference in using our previous choices as learning opportunities and wallowing in the cringey-ness of our mistakes.”

“Create⟳ an upbeat mix⟳ for your life’s soundtrack. Easier yet, tell⟳ Alexa to play⟳ songs from the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s or whatever musical genre that is your motivational call-to-arms. I created a playlist and titled it “Happy.” (Remember⟳, we are verbing happy, so don’t roll your eyes at me.) I listened to it every day while writing this book and often broke into dance⟳. Added bonus: the unabashed cringey-ness of it would annoy the crap out of my kids. It was the gift that kept on giving.”

“That’s what ADHD looks like⟳ in real life. What working memory and executive function challenges add⟳ up to. At times, it can feel⟳ like⟳ an absolute shit show⟳. Constantly losing things, forgetting things, going in the wrong direction, and arriving at the wrong places. After a while, it begins to wear⟳ on you—the shame of it all; the exhaustion. The cringey-ness of having to tell⟳ someone you are running late again, or the expense of having to buy⟳ a tenth pair of headphones.”

“When about to hook up with a new guy in episode 5, rather than setting the mood, Joanna goes around her bedroom, hiding photos of her family and explaining why they shouldn’t watch⟳: “That’s my grandpa. Get⟳ outta here, Grandpa! He survived Auschwitz… I’m quickly going to turn⟳ down my grandma, too. She also survived Auschwitz.” It’s cringey in an almost Michael Scott/The Office way; but where Steve Carrell^([sic]) asks us to love⟳ Michael despite his cringey-ness, Bayer is asking us to love⟳ Joanna Gold because of her cringey-ness.”

“To my kids, whom I trust⟳ to groan and roll their eyes at the slightest hint of cringey-ness or clichés.”

“‘He misses holding me through the night and we only get⟳ to have⟳ morning sex, but he understands that it’s important. He supports my dreams. He buys new dishwashing tablets for me to try⟳ and calls them my “new num nums”.’ I reflect⟳ on this for a moment. ‘His cringey-ness is becoming more acceptable to me.’”

“And so, just as you would build⟳ a relationship with a partner, you have⟳ to build⟳ a relationship with yourself. Practices and processes are the way to do that. It requires diligence and time and expectation and disappointment and cringey-ness—just as building a relationship with a partner does, but even more so. Much more.”

CEFR level