wriggle out of — avoid an obligation (figurative)
to cleverly or dishonestly avoid doing something you should do, such as a responsibility, duty, or promise, often by making excuses or finding loopholes
Say it like a native
Textbook He devised excuses to evade his contractual obligations.
Native He always wriggles out of doing his share.
'Wriggle out of' captures sneakily dodging a duty; 'evade contractual obligations' is formal.
Pattern: wriggle out of + noun/gerund
In use
- He always tries to wriggle out of doing the washing up.work
- Some people attempt to wriggle out of their social responsibilities, but I believe everyone should contribute to the community.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ He wriggled out doing the work.
✓ He wriggled out of doing the work.
'Wriggle out OF' something — don't drop 'of'; takes '+ -ing'.
Common collocations
wriggle out of + duty— of it, of the contract, of doing it, of responsibility
Don't confuse it
Unlike the literal sense of 'wriggle' (move your body to get free), this sense is figurative and about avoiding something you should do. Compared to 'get out of', 'wriggle out of' suggests more effort or cleverness in escaping responsibility.