uptight
Americanadjective
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tense, nervous, or jittery.
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annoyed or angry.
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stiffly conventional in manner or attitudes.
adjective
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displaying tense repressed nervousness, irritability, or anger
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unable to give expression to one's feelings, personality, etc
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of uptight
Explanation
To be uptight is to be tense. When you're uptight, you're stressed out and anxious. If your friends are always telling you to relax, you may be a little uptight. People who are uptight tend to be stressed out. Your worried grandmother might be considered uptight, and so might your sister's angry teacher who is always yelling at the class. The adjective uptight was first used as popular slang in the 1930's to mean "tense." In the 1960's, the connotation changed to "straight-laced" or "conservative." For a brief time, uptight appeared in jazz slang meaning "excellent."
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.
Miss Yodle, the family’s uptight neighbor, styles her hair “in tight little braids twisted around her skull, giving her head the air of a victim.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Sean Penn, Hollywood's eternal rebel, on Sunday won a third Oscar for his comic yet terrifying portrayal of an absurdly uptight soldier ashamed of his past in "One Battle After Another."
From Barron's ● Mar. 16, 2026
On its surface, Atlas seems to be delivering a revenge fantasy: All those uptight women who rejected you will get dumped by the time they’re 30, guys!
From Salon ● Nov. 21, 2025
I've worked so hard to be in these positions, the last thing I'm going to do is get uptight about it.
From BBC ● Nov. 8, 2025
I told her about the math test, the fight, about my pops getting uptight about the tutor, and last about Margie.
From "Slam!" by Walter Dean Myers
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
