anxious

anx·ious

adj \ˈaŋ(k)-shəs\

Definition of ANXIOUS

1

: characterized by extreme uneasiness of mind or brooding fear about some contingency : worried <anxious parents>

2

: characterized by, resulting from, or causing anxiety : worrying <an anxious night>

3

: ardently or earnestly wishing <anxious to learn more>

— anx·ious·ly adverb

— anx·ious·ness noun

Examples of ANXIOUS

1. She feels anxious and depressed.
2. People are anxious about the future.
3. He was anxious that the weather would not improve in time for the party.
4. We experienced a few anxious moments as we waited to hear the results of the test.
5. It was an anxious night as she waited for her children to come home.
6. He was waiting at the door with an anxious expression on his face.
7. He was anxious for more news.
8. … to the eye anxious for reform in the city and forgetful of conditions in the countryside … —Joseph A. Amato, Dust, 2000
9. He was exhausted yet exhilarated, anxious … about getting on the ice with a team that had a chance to win. —Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated, 20 Mar. 2000
10. The individual states—fearful of losing industry and richer residents to lower-tax rivals and anxious to minimize their burden of needy citizens … —Atlantic, May 1997
11. He was so anxious to get a fly into the water that he had to reproach himself for haste. —John Cheever, The Wapshot Chronicle, 1957

Origin of ANXIOUS

Latin anxius; akin to Latin angere to strangle, distress — more at anger

First Known Use: circa 1616

Related to ANXIOUS

Synonyms: aflutter, antsy, nervous, atwitter, dithery, edgy, goosey, het up, hinky [slang], hung up, ill at ease, insecure, jittery, jumpy, nervy, perturbed, queasy (also queazy), tense, troubled, uneasy, unquiet, upset, uptight, worried

Antonyms: calm, collected, cool, easy, happy-go-lucky, nerveless, relaxed

Related Words: aggrieved, bothered, concerned, disquieted, distraught, distressed, disturbed, freaked, freaked-out, shook-up; apprehensive, foreboding, hesitant, misgiving; fretful, fretting, stewing, vexed; qualmish, qualmy; flustered, twittered, undone, unnerved, unstrung; obsessed, preoccupied, restless; fidgety, flighty, fluttery, high-strung, hypertense, skittish, spooky

Near Antonyms: confident, self-assured, self-confident, sure; controlled, self-controlled

see all synonyms and antonyms

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See Synonym Discussion at eager

Other Psychology Terms

fetish, hypochondria, intelligence, mania, narcissism, neurosis, pathological, psychosis, schadenfreude, subliminal