as in to whimper
to complain or cry in an annoying way
The child sniveled until he got his way.
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Recent Examples of snivel
Downey redirects all his Tony Stark smarm into this portrait of a sniveling, jealous political worm, a marvelous capstone to his Hollywood comeback story.
—
Jordan Hoffman, Vanity Fair, 15 Mar. 2026
Faced with the sniveling sum of these failures, Garfield is startled but compassionate.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 7 Nov. 2025
Throughout many revealing conversations, the braggadocious zeal of Poseidon and Zeus, the sexy aloofness of Aphrodite and Dionysus, and the sniveling bitchery of Hermes and Hypnos were endearing, but all gave way to flawed people who grew deeply over time.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2025
In the show, Cooke plays the regal Alicent Hightower and Glynn-Carney is her sniveling son, King Aegon Targaryen.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2025
Played by a sniveling Casey Siemaszko, Billy is spineless and spiteful.
—Sezin Devi Koehler September 1, EW.com, 1 Sep. 2025
In league with its sniveling human colleague Gabriel (Esai Morales, cackling with evil intent as if being paid by the cackle), The Entity is hacking into the world’s nuclear defense systems and taking control of the missiles, one paralyzed and panicking nation at a time.
—Michael Phillips Chicago Tribune, Boston Herald, 22 May 2025
But when Aurelius informs his son, Commodus (a sniveling Joaquin Phoenix), the latter murders his father before the decision is made public.
—Lisa De Los Reyes, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Dec. 2024
But Sarah had only driven about a block before Jamie called to snivel out an apology.
—Charlie Mason, TVLine, 24 Nov. 2024
Jordan Hoffman, Vanity Fair, 15 Mar. 2026
Faced with the sniveling sum of these failures, Garfield is startled but compassionate.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 7 Nov. 2025
Throughout many revealing conversations, the braggadocious zeal of Poseidon and Zeus, the sexy aloofness of Aphrodite and Dionysus, and the sniveling bitchery of Hermes and Hypnos were endearing, but all gave way to flawed people who grew deeply over time.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2025
In the show, Cooke plays the regal Alicent Hightower and Glynn-Carney is her sniveling son, King Aegon Targaryen.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2025
Played by a sniveling Casey Siemaszko, Billy is spineless and spiteful.
—Sezin Devi Koehler September 1, EW.com, 1 Sep. 2025
In league with its sniveling human colleague Gabriel (Esai Morales, cackling with evil intent as if being paid by the cackle), The Entity is hacking into the world’s nuclear defense systems and taking control of the missiles, one paralyzed and panicking nation at a time.
—Michael Phillips Chicago Tribune, Boston Herald, 22 May 2025
But when Aurelius informs his son, Commodus (a sniveling Joaquin Phoenix), the latter murders his father before the decision is made public.
—Lisa De Los Reyes, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Dec. 2024
But Sarah had only driven about a block before Jamie called to snivel out an apology.
—Charlie Mason, TVLine, 24 Nov. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snivel
Verb
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As the timer passed seven minutes, Steve Eckert exhorted a whimpering young man to dunk his head underwater.—
Charles Bethea,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
-
The three added their flowers to the memorial and embraced each other as Annie Guthrie appeared to softly whimper.—
Perry Vandell,
AZCentral.com,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Rabell was wearing her nightgown, sobbing, shaking and slumped against her cane when Horta picked her up, Horta said.—
Carol Marbin Miller,
Miami Herald,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Family members, wearing yellow with buttons that pictured Preston, sobbed throughout much of the hearing.—
Madeline Buckley,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Chuck went viral on social media after the NBC Sports Bay Area broadcast repeatedly showed him kicking, screaming and crying in family members’ arms — reacting to the family’s celebrations of Susac’s big day.—
Michael McGough,
Sacbee.com,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Perhaps the path forward is not only for those holding the signs, but also for those who stop being spectators — like the young woman to my left on Saturday who suddenly began to cry, or the older woman who, after talking about blues music, felt the need to tell me that this is not good for anyone.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Or get ready for a lot of groaning and whining.—
Keely Doll,
Louisville Courier Journal,
25 Mar. 2026
-
With LeBron James buying into a supporting actor role, the Lakers are a legitimate threat because Doncic is more focused on scoring buckets than whining to officials.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
One minute later, Pedro Neto was yellow-carded for moaning.—
Matt Slater,
New York Times,
5 Mar. 2026
-
The Freight House building creaks and moans underfoot, and passing trains produce little more than a subtle hum.—
Nicole Letts,
Southern Living,
28 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Saturday’s final score, 9-0 in the visitor’s favor, only partially encapsulates the degree to which New York (5-4) outplayed San Francisco (3-6) in front of a packed house that had more reasons to groan than reasons to cheer.—
Justice delos Santos,
Mercury News,
5 Apr. 2026
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No amount of jazz playlists can stop him from glancing at his GPS, groaning as the ETA keeps getting pushed back.—
Connor Letourneau,
San Francisco Chronicle,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Snivel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snivel. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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