twitch

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v., twitched, twitch·ing, twitch·es.

v.tr.

To draw, pull, or move suddenly and sharply; jerk: I twitched my fishing line.

v.intr.

1. To move jerkily or spasmodically. See synonyms at jerk¹.
2. To ache sharply from time to time; twinge.

n.

1. A sudden involuntary or spasmodic muscular movement: a twitch of the eye.
2. A sudden pulling; a tug: The fish gave my line a twitch.
3. A looped cord used to restrain a horse by tightening it around the animal's upper lip.

[Middle English twicchen, possibly akin to Low German twikken.]

twitchingly twitch'ing·ly adv.

verb

To move or cause to move with a sudden abrupt motion: jerk, lurch, snap, wrench, yank. See move/halt, push/pull.

noun

1. A nervous shaking of the body: quake, quiver, shake, shiver¹, shudder, thrill, tic, tremor. See repetition.
2. A sudden motion, such as a pull: jerk, lurch, snap, tug, wrench, yank. See move/halt, push/pull.

n

1. the contraction of small muscle units, manifested as a quick, simple, spasmodic contraction of a muscle. 2. a short, sudden pull or jerk.

1. A brief contraction of muscle in response to a stimulus.

2. The response of a motor unit to a single brief threshold stimulus, A twitch has three phases; a latent period; a period of contraction; and a period of relaxation. See also refractory period.

Twitch

1. a brief, contractile response of a skeletal muscle elicited by a single maximal volley of impulses in the neurons supplying it.
2. a device used in the restraint of horses; there are a great many designs. The standard twitch consists of a loop of cord or chain at the end of a short, 2 ft (0.6 m), wooden handle. A fold of muzzle is enclosed in the loop which is then screwed tight. The handle may be held by an assistant or tied to the halter.

Twitch. By permission from Knottenbelt DC, Pascoe RR, Diseases and Disorders of the Horse, Saunders, 2003

• Galvayne's t. — a loop of soft rope is passed over the poll and through the mouth, below the upper lip but in front of and above the incisor teeth.
• halter t. — the shank of the halter is passed over the poll and back to the near side through the mouth and then through the halter again.
• human t. — for restraining horses, it consists of a hinged metal device which is placed over the upper lip and clipped to the halter.
• leg t. — a tourniquet applied above the carpal joint.
• loop t. — a loop in a soft rope is passed over the poll and through the mouth above the tongue and pulled tight.
• Martingale t. — see humane twitch.
• screw t. — has the same effect as the standard twitch but the loop is of rigid metal and it is closed by screwing a bar up to clamp the fold of muzzle skin.

IN BRIEF: A sudden muscle spasm. Also: To make an uncontrolled, short, jerky motion.

But when the pen is in his hand he has to write by itch and twitch, though certainly his itch and twitch are intimately conditioned by all his past itching and twitching, and by all his past theorizing about them. — John Ciardi

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Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - nappe, rykke, rive
v. intr. - give et ryk
n. - nap, ryk, trækning

Nederlands (Dutch)
trekken (ongecontroleerd), ruk (je), zenuwtrek

Français (French)
v. tr. - tirer sur (qch) d'un coup sec, froncer (le nez, les sourcils)
v. intr. - trembloter, trembler, cligner nerveusement, tressauter, tirer sur (qch) d'un coup sec
n. - tic, soubresaut, coup sec

Deutsch (German)
n. - Zerren, Ruck, Zuckung, Stich, Nasenbremse (für Pferde)
v. - zerren, zucken

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - σύσπαση, σπασμός, τικ, απότομο τράβηγμα, τίναγμα
v. - συσπώ/-ώμαι, τραβώ απότομα

Italiano (Italian)
convulsione

Português (Portuguese)
n. - puxão (m), espasmo (m), safanão (m), convulsão (f)
v. - puxar, rebeliscar

Русский (Russian)
судорога, конвульсия, тик, нервничать

Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - tirar de, dar un tirón, arrancar
v. intr. - crisparse, moverse convulsivamente, contraerse espasmódicamente
n. - tic, contracción nerviosa, tirón, punzada, crispamiento, temblor

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - (kramp)ryckning, (muskel)sammandragning, stickande smärta, stick, sting
v. - ha (få) krampryckningar, knipa ihop, rycka (dra) i, knäppa på (stränginstrument), nypa

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
使抽动, 猛拉, 急扯, 使痉挛, 猛夺, 急拉, 阵痛, 抽搐, 颤动

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 使抽動, 猛拉, 急扯, 使痙攣, 猛奪
v. intr. - 急拉, 陣痛, 抽搐
n. - 急扯, 抽搐, 顫動

한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - 잡아채다, 꼬집다, 경련을 일으키게 하다
v. intr. - 씰룩 거리다, 경련을 일으키다, 홱 잡아 당기다
n. - (갑자기) 잡아 당김

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - ぴくんと動かす, ぐいと引く, 引きつる, つねる
n. - ぴくぴく動くこと, 痙攣, ぐいと引くこと, 疼き

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) شد, نشل, انتزاع (فعل) ينشل, ينتزع‏

עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - ‮עיווה, הניע, הרעיד, משך, חטף‬
v. intr. - ‮התעוות, פירפר, זע‬
n. - ‮עווית, טיק, זיע, משיכת-פתע‬

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