anxiety
Americannoun
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anxieties
plural
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distress or uneasiness of mind caused by fear of danger or misfortune.
He felt anxiety about the possible loss of his job.
- Synonyms:
- disquiet, worry, foreboding, fear
- Antonyms:
- tranquility, serenity, certainty
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earnest but tense desire; eagerness.
He had a keen anxiety to succeed in his work.
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Psychiatry. a state of apprehension and psychic tension occurring in some forms of mental disorder.
noun
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a state of uneasiness or tension caused by apprehension of possible future misfortune, danger, etc; worry
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intense desire; eagerness
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psychol a state of intense apprehension or worry often accompanied by physical symptoms such as shaking, intense feelings in the gut, etc, common in mental illness or after a very distressing experience See also angst
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A state of apprehension and fear resulting from the anticipation of a threatening event or situation.
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◆ In psychiatry, a patient has an anxiety disorder ◆ if normal psychological functioning is disrupted or if anxiety persists without an identifiable cause.
Synonym Usage
See apprehension.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of anxiety
First recorded in 1515–25; from Latin anxietās, equivalent to anxi(us) anxious + -etās, variant of -itās before a vowel
Compare meaning
How does anxiety compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Anxiety is the vague, uneasy feeling you get when you're dreading something. Anxiety can also be a permanent state of nervousness that some people with mental illnesses experience, a milder version of panic. When a scary or unpleasant event is looming, like getting a family portrait taken the year you have braces, you might feel some anxiety. You might also feel anxiety about passing chemistry, especially if you’ve skipped a lot of classes. Someone who suffers from a mild or severe mental illness might feel anxiety all the time. Deep breathing, playing relaxing music, and medication have all been known to help reduce anxiety.
Vocabulary lists containing anxiety
The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 4
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"The Tell-Tale Heart," Vocabulary from the short story
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Cliffe said the idea was inspired by his own experience after leaving work because of anxiety.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
The rise in rates is fueling anxiety among borrowers who fear they could miss their chance at homeownership if rates move any higher.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
These included self-control, fear of missing out on social experiences, and neuroticism, a personality trait associated with a greater tendency to experience negative emotions such as anxiety, sadness, fear, and anger.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 12, 2026
But “Tender Loving Care,” centered on two social service workers navigating the fraying social safety net and, in one case, anxiety about aging parents, possesses a bracing humanity full of compassion and urgency.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
In spite of his anxiety, he tried to keep up the appearance of calm in order to maintain morale.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
But that urge to stop working after turning 60 and your many unresolved anxieties about retirement are, to an extent, in conflict.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
Corporations, government and the media taught consumers what progress should look like, which anxieties a product might soothe, and what kind of future to desire.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
It describes several overlapping anxieties about modern restaurant food, but its prehistory belongs, at least partly, to the ghost kitchen.
From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026
Macron said earlier this week that he understood the anxieties and anger driving young people to protest but he condemned the violence.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
There were little cracks in the parental college resolve last night and I know what Hina would advise, so I try to channel her patience and understanding of my parents’ anxieties.
From "Love, Hate & Other Filters" by Samira Ahmed
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
