cringe
cringe, cringeworthy, embarrassing
Pronunciation
/krindʐ/
Cultural Note
'Cringe' was adopted directly from English into Polish internet slang and is now used daily by Gen Z. It's pronounced with a Polish accent (/krindʐ/) and has been partially naturalized — you'll see 'crinżowy' (cringe-worthy) as an adjective form. It fills a gap that Polish didn't have a perfect word for — that specific secondhand embarrassment feeling. Polish internet culture has also created 'crinżować się' (to cringe). The word is controversial among language purists but completely standard among anyone under 25. It was voted one of the 'Youth Words of the Year' in Poland.
📝 Example Sentences
Jego propozycja na Instagramie to był totalny cringe.
His proposal on Instagram was total cringe.
Ale cringe, nie rób tego więcej.
So cringe, don't do that again.