nervousness
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of nervousness
Explanation
Nervousness is a quality of feeling anxious, worried, or alarmed. Your nervousness about flying in an airplane for the first time shouldn't keep you from fulfilling your dream of traveling to Iceland! Nervousness takes many forms. What's thrilling to one person —skydiving, public speaking, hosting a party — makes others feel nervous down to their bones. Your dog's nervousness around loud city traffic might finally convince you to move to the country, while your brother might end up outgrowing his nervousness around animals and wind up becoming a vet someday. Nervousness can involve sweating and trembling, or it can be invisible to observers.
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.
Scotland head coach Sebastien Pocognoli admits to feeling a "positive nervousness" before his first game in charge of the country, a Nations League tie against Slovenia in Ljubljana on Saturday.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
“I think there is widespread nervousness across the French system whether it is political, diplomatic or military about the role that Germany seems to want to give itself,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
The heightened nervousness was underscored by security guards blocking photographers and videojournalists from entering the hospital.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
“It was nerve-racking, but knowing our team is one, the nervousness turns to confidence,” Seung said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Bailey stares out at the grey sky with a mixture of comfort and excitement and nervousness that he cannot reconcile.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
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.
