anxious
Americanadjective
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full of mental distress or uneasiness because of fear of danger or misfortune; greatly worried; apprehensive.
Her parents were anxious about her poor health.
- Synonyms:
- enthusiastic, solicitous, uneasy, fearful, disturbed, concerned
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earnestly desirous; eager (usually followed by an infinitive orfor ): anxious for our happiness.
anxious to please;
anxious for our happiness.
-
attended with or showing solicitude or uneasiness.
anxious forebodings.
adjective
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worried and tense because of possible misfortune, danger, etc; uneasy
-
fraught with or causing anxiety; worrying; distressing
an anxious time
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intensely desirous; eager
anxious for promotion
Other Word Forms
- anxiously adverb
- anxiousness noun
- quasi-anxious adjective
- unanxious adjective
Etymology
Origin of anxious
First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin anxius “worried, distressed,” derivative of angere “to strangle, pain, distress”; anguish, -ous
Compare meaning
How does anxious compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
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.
I wasn’t anxious to go in now, because Cully’s place—no more than a shack—leaned considerably to the right.
From Literature
South African-born Vanessa, who has been living in Northern Ireland for several years, said she felt frustrated and anxious as she waited to be called.
From BBC
It begins as a duet with Kermit, playing his left-handed banjo, and ends with Miss Piggy, who muscles her way in, anxious for screen time after her Aphrodite number is cut.
From Los Angeles Times
Our paper was over by morning break, and Bright was anxious to leave, but I told him to wait till the bell rang and classes resumed so no one would see us go.
From Literature
Americans have continued to spend, but many say they are feeling the squeeze after five years of persistent inflation and as consumers remain anxious about affordability and sluggish hiring.
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.
