worried sick

Idioms

Also, worried to death. Extremely anxious, as in Her parents were worried sick when she didn't come home all night, or We've been worried to death about the drop in the stock market. These somewhat hyperbolic phrases (one could conceivably feel ill from worrying but would hardly die from it) date from the second half of the 1800s.

Example Sentences

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worried sick

Wallis said he had spoken to one woman who had been "worried sick about her child", and who said the gender service had not looked into any "of his comorbidities".

From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026

The other three are native-born Americans, but she's worried sick every time they leave the house.

From Barron's ● Feb. 1, 2026

Once upon a time, not long ago, Elon Musk was worried sick about climate change.

From Slate ● Mar. 28, 2025

Retired nursery owner Seonaid Blackie said: "This is not the place it used to be - people are worried sick."

From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2024

She’d be worried sick if she came in and found that he and Boots had disappeared.

From "Gregor the Overlander" by Suzanne Collins

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

worried sick

Example Sentences

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