angst

[ ahngkst, angst ]

/ ɑŋkst, æŋst /

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noun

a feeling of dread, anxiety, or anguish.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of angst

1840–50; <German Angst fear, anxiety, Old High German angust (cognate with Middle Low German angest,Middle Dutch anxt), equivalent to ang- (akin to eng narrow, constricted) + -st abstract nominal suffix, perhaps a conglomerate of a suffix *-os- + *-ti- suffix forming abstracts

OTHER WORDS FROM angst

angsty, adjective, angst·i·er, angst·i·est.

Words nearby angst

Angra Mainyu, Angrboda, angrily, angry, angry young man, angst, angstrom, angsty, Anguier, Anguilla, anguilliform

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use angst in a sentence

Heightening his angst, Warren pines for precocious Jessica (Gevinson).
Michael Cera Brings ‘This Is Our Youth’ to Broadway After 18 Years|Tom Teodorczuk|September 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
All the paranoia over shape, all the body angst, previously thought as reserved for women, is coming our way, guys.
Prince Fielder’s Demi Moore Moment: World Loses It Over Athlete Without Six-Pack|Tim Teeman|July 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Breaking up is hard to do—especially for your friends who have to listen to countless hours of your post-relationship angst.
A New Breakup Therapist: Your Phone|Erin Cunningham|July 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Even before that ode to Jewish angst and masturbation hit the bookstores in 1969, Roth was a Yaddo veteran.
The Climax of ‘Portnoy’s Complaint’|Robert Hofler|May 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST

And I admit I look back on my teenage self and think a lot of my angst sounds like an Onion article.
An Ode to Angry Asians: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Suey Park|Arthur Chu|April 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Her situation is a very difficult one; and "die Angst," she says, often brings on a pain at her heart.
George Eliot's Life, Vol. I (of 3)|George Eliot
As used in the early eighteenth century, the term "hyp" was perhaps not far from what our century has learned to call Angst.
Hypochondriasis|John Hill

British Dictionary definitions for angst

angst

/ (æŋst, German aŋst) /

noun

an acute but nonspecific sense of anxiety or remorse

(in Existentialist philosophy) the dread caused by man's awareness that his future is not determined but must be freely chosen

Word Origin for angst

German

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for angst

angst

[ (ahngkst) ]

A kind of fear or anxiety; Angst is German for “fear.” It is usually applied to a deep and essentially philosophical anxiety about the world in general or personal freedom. (See existentialism.)

angst

Origin of angst

OTHER WORDS FROM angst

Words nearby angst

Words related to angst

How to use angst in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for angst

Word Origin for angst

Cultural definitions for angst