cringing

(verb) draw back, as with fear or pain. Synonyms: flinch, squinch, funk, cringe, shrink, wince, recoil, quail. Example: "She flinched when they showed the slaughtering of the calf."

(verb) show submission or fear. Synonyms: fawn, crawl, creep, cringe, cower, grovel.

(adj) totally submissive. Synonyms: groveling, grovelling, wormlike, wormy.