collywobbles

[kol-ee-wob-uh lz]

See more synonyms for collywobbles on Thesaurus.com

noun (used with a singular or plural verb) Informal.

intestinal cramps or other intestinal disturbances.
a feeling of fear, apprehension, or nervousness.

Origin of collywobbles

1815–25; coinage presumably based on colic, wobble; see -s³

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for collywobbles

heebie-jeebies, collywobbles

Examples from the Web for collywobbles

Historical Examples of collywobbles

We took it out by staring Driggs almost into the collywobbles.
At Good Old Siwash
George Fitch
Let's get out of here; this place gives me the collywobbles.
Native Son
T. D. Hamm

British Dictionary definitions for collywobbles

collywobbles

pl n the collywobbles slang

an upset stomach
acute diarrhoea
an intense feeling of nervousness

Word Origin for collywobbles

C19: probably from New Latin cholera morbus the disease cholera, influenced through folk etymology by colic and wobble

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

Word Origin and History for collywobbles

1823, fanciful formation from colic and wobble.