Winkle
[WINK-əl]
Part of speech: verb
Origin: British, late 16th century
Extract or obtain something with difficulty.
Examples of winkle in a sentence
"The interrogator was used to winkling confessions out of the most hard-boiled subjects."
"I had to winkle the button out of the too-tight buttonhole on my new shirt."
About Winkle
This word originated from a shortening of the word “periwinkle” — a mollusk with a spiral shell usually found along shores and beaches.
Did you Know?
The verb form of "winkle" means to "extract something with great difficulty," but there's a noun form of "winkle" as well. Seafood lovers might recognize a winkle as a tiny mollusk with a spiral shell. These edible mollusks are usually around the size of a pinkie nail.