Wiggle Room Is a Political Invention
To wiggle is to move with small quick movements. The phrase wiggle room, meaning flexibility, is American and dates from the mid-twentieth century.
To wiggle is to move from side to side in small quick motions. The figurative *wiggle room* — space to manoeuvre in a negotiation — is American and spread through politics and business from around the 1970s. It replaced older phrases like *elbow room* and *leeway*, and it is now the standard term. The verb itself is old and imitative.
- To move in small motions. *Wiggle your toes.*
- Noun, such a movement. *A wiggle of the hips.*
- Wiggle room — flexibility. *No wiggle room in the budget.*
- Wiggly — not straight. *A wiggly line.*
- Wriggle — the closely related word. *Wriggle free.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | wiggle | Wiggle it loose. |
| Past | wiggled | It wiggled free. |
| Noun | wiggle | A quick wiggle. |
| Adjective | wiggly | A wiggly worm. |
| Related | wriggle | Wriggle through. |
- Wiggle the plug to see if it is loose.Practical.
- There is no wiggle room on the deadline.Negotiation.
- The child wriggled out of his grip.The near-synonym.
Wiggle or wriggle?
- Wiggle — side-to-side movement of something fixed at one end
- Wriggle — twisting movement of a whole body, often to escape
- Wriggle out of — avoid an obligation; wiggle out of is rarer
- Wriggle belongs to the wr- twisting family
- In practice they overlap heavily and speakers use both
Middle English, related to Middle Low German *wiggelen*, and imitative in character. *Wiggle room* is American and dates from the mid-twentieth century.
What does wiggle room mean?
Flexibility or space to manoeuvre, especially in a negotiation or a schedule.
What is the difference between wiggle and wriggle?
Wiggle is a small side-to-side movement; wriggle is a twisting one, usually of a whole body trying to get free.