highly strung
Britishadjective
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.
Other significant roles around this time included the highly strung Major Burns in Robert Altman's M*A*S*H and THX 1138, the eponymous protagonist of George Lucas's dystopian 1971 sci-fi debut.
From BBC • Feb. 16, 2026
Aimée Kelly plays the role with a winning blend of caustic humor and narcissistic self-pity: She’s highly strung, manipulative and insecure.
From New York Times • Oct. 27, 2023
Norman was put in a large, state-of-the-art enclosure with other kangaroos but was clearly highly strung and by day two was looking for a way out.
From Reuters • Jul. 31, 2018
When a thespian gets nominated for an Academy Award—cue the couture frocks, highly strung stylists, hair-burners, and eyebrow threaders—she climbs into the fashion cannon and somebody lights the fuse.
From Slate • Feb. 28, 2016
A member of the Non-European Unity Movement, Don had grown up in the diamond-mining area of Kimberley and was a rugged, fearless fellow who was also highly strung.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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.
