1.
to turn awkward; to become stiff (in movement or speech)
The adverbial form of the i-adjective ぎこちない (awkward, clumsy) plus なる. Describes a shift from natural to unnatural — often in conversation, body language, or movement when someone gets self-conscious.
Formed from the i-adjective ぎこちない (awkward, clumsy, stilted) by replacing 〜い with 〜くなる (the standard 'become Adj' pattern). Used both physically and socially.