cringe

cringe away from (someone or something)

To move away from someone or something, usually out of fear. I cringed away from the snake and prayed that it wouldn't see me.
See also: away, cringe

cringe before (someone or something)

To shrink away from someone or something, usually out of fear. I cringed before my dad when he caught me sneaking in after curfew.
See also: before, cringe

cringe from (someone or something)

To shrink back from someone or something, especially out of fear. I cringed from the snake and prayed that it wouldn't see me. The child cringed from the teacher after he raised his hand in anger.
See also: cringe
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

cringe away from someone or something

 and cringe from someone or something
to pull back or away from someone or something, as from fear. The child cringed away from the teacher. Why did you cringe away from the dentist's chair? The cat cringed from the fire. The child cringed from the huge dog.
See also: away, cringe

cringe before someone or something

to cower or recoil in the presence of someone or something. Jeff cringed before the wrath of the policeman.
See also: before, cringe
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • cringe away from
  • cringe away from (someone or something)
  • draw away
  • draw away from (someone or something)
  • drag (someone or something) away from (something)
  • drag away
  • drag (someone or something) away
  • deflect
  • deflect (something) away from (someone or something)
  • deflect away from
References in periodicals archive
Du (2011) treated this as the symptom of cultural cringe. The defeats from the Opium War, Sino-French war and other wars in the 19th century made Chinese people realize the huge gap between Western countries and China in technology, economy and political development.
And partly because I agree with his theory, though I don't think "cultural cringe" is some deadly malady like, say, poison oak.
But Caliban does not cringe. He strikes out at Prospero.
"The Democratic defense of abortion makes me cringe," Blustain wrote.
It's hard not to cringe watching three-year-old Dzoel-kifl break the window of an abandoned trailer with an axe, but it's just as difficult not to share in his joyful surprise as he yells, "I did it!" The one adult with a minor role is annoying: Cooking over a fire, he warns the children (in English), "Be careful!"--an order that they ask Conijn to translate into Dutch.
Say the words "down time" to any mining contractor, and one is guaranteed to see him cringe. Down time is one of the most costly situations on any job site, but it can largely be avoided by implementing a policy of preventative maintenance, such as fluid level checks and pressure checks.
What it puts him in the mood for sometimes makes me cringe. He's started wanting me to re-enact famous movie sex scenes - including that food scene from 9 1/2 Weeks.
How many of us cringe when we hear about "cancer patients" or "AIDS patients" instead of "patients with cancer" or "people living with AIDS," as if one's disease defined a human being?
Many cringe at the thought of so much golf and paycheck temptation.
Supertasters often cringe at intense vegetable flavors, and the supertasting seniors eat fewer vegetables than do their counterparts with normal taste sensitivity.
Most park rangers cringe at the thought of construction equipment in their forests.
And families were the source of the second biggest cringe too, according to 16 to 24-year-olds, with 37 per cent saying they have an embarrassing relative.
DUBLIN--Women and men who cringe at the annual New Testament reading from Colossians that admonishes wives to "be submissive to your husbands" now have allies in bishops from Ireland and the United States.
I know such language makes some people cringe, but I feel no embarrassment whatsoever.
Parents and health care practitioners alike cringe at the mere thought of exposing children to agents associated with cancer.