kink

American  

[kingk] / kɪŋk /

noun

1. a twist or curl, as in a thread, rope, wire, or hair, caused by its doubling or bending upon itself.

   The kink in the hose was restricting the water flow.

2. a muscular stiffness or soreness, as in the neck or back.

   The kink in my neck was making it difficult to turn my head at all.

3. a flaw or imperfection likely to hinder the successful operation of something, such as a machine or plan.

   There are still a few kinks to be worked out of the design before we start production.

4. Slang.

   1. unconventional sexual preferences or behavior collectively.

   2. a particular sexual preference or behavior that is unconventional.

   3. a person characterized by such preferences or behavior; kinkster.

5. a mental twist; notion; whim.

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verb (used with or without object)

1. to form or cause to form a twist or curl, as in a rope.

   The high tensile steel wire ensures the product will not kink in the sharpest bend.

kink British  

/ kɪŋk /

noun

1. a sharp twist or bend in a wire, rope, hair, etc, esp one caused when it is pulled tight

2. a crick in the neck or similar muscular spasm

3. a flaw or minor difficulty in some undertaking or project

4. a flaw or idiosyncrasy of personality; quirk

5. informal a sexual deviation

6. a clever or unusual idea

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verb

1. to form or cause to form a kink

Other Word Forms

• unkink verb

Etymology

Origin of kink

First recorded in 1670–80; from Dutch: “a twist in a rope”; perhaps akin to kick ( def. )

Explanation

A kink is a bend or a twist in an otherwise straight line, like a kink in a garden hose that blocks water from flowing freely. When something kinks, it bends to form a kink or curl — if your hair kinks in the rain, it gets tightly curly. You can also have a kink in your neck, a tight muscle that cramps painfully. Yet another kind of kink is a problem, complication, or weakness in a plan: "The major kink in her plan turned out to be that no one was interested in buying hand-knitted cat sweaters."

Example Sentences

Enough time for a detail-oriented TV producer to spot that Salman, Pakistan's skipper, sported a kink in his collar.

From BBC • Feb. 15, 2026

One absentee, however, will be Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, who has been ruled out with a "kink in his back", according to the Norwegian ski federation.

From Barron's • Jan. 21, 2026

The voice that sang it was profound and strong, but quavering and not quite in tune: an old oak tree with a strong trunk but with branches starting to kink and leaves to wither.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 9, 2025

The rise of AI-generated images and photos has added another troubling kink, as Sterling highlighted in a video posted to TikTok early Thursday.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 10, 2025

Even though the red came from my father, the curls and kink came from my mom.

From "Harbor Me" by Jacqueline Woodson

Related Words

• flaw
• hitch
• imperfection