anxiously
Americanadverb
-
in an uneasy or worried manner.
My first call was to my wife, who had been anxiously awaiting word of my whereabouts.
-
in an earnestly desirous or eager manner.
They are anxiously awaiting the birth of their first child.
Other Word Forms
- quasi-anxiously adverb
- unanxiously adverb
Etymology
Origin of anxiously
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.
Farmers have been anxiously waiting for the release of new quotas, saying they could provide a much-needed increase in demand for crops such as soybeans.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026
Seafarers stuck in the Gulf say they are rationing food and water and anxiously hoping supplies will get through Iran's blockade in the war that has stranded them for three weeks.
From Barron's • Mar. 20, 2026
Burmese TPS holders are waiting anxiously to see how these rulings could impact TPS altogether.
From Slate • Mar. 19, 2026
There is no front desk, no bench of anxiously waiting civilians, no officer calling out names.
From BBC • Mar. 3, 2026
Witchlings embraced and joined their new covens happily, and all the while, Seven waited, eyeing Poppy anxiously.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
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.
