on pins and needles

Cultural  

1. In a state of anxiety or tense expectation: “Jackie was on pins and needles waiting to hear about her job application.”

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on pins and needles Idioms  

1. Nervously anxious, as in He was on pins and needles, waiting for the test results. The graphic expression pins and needles for the tingling sensation experienced in recovering from numbness was transferred to a feeling of marked mental uneasiness about 1800.

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Example Sentences

“We were all on pins and needles,” Missy says.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Everybody was on pins and needles,” the counselor said at the hearing.

From Salon

"We're all on pins and needles and have been anxiously sitting by our phones, staring at the TV, having the radio going - trying to stay as informed as possible because there wasn't a good system in place," said Ms Alvarez-Petit, who lives in West Los Angeles.

From BBC

“I mean, we have not discussed it. And not even just for me. The people who work there. They’re the ones on pins and needles. Just say something to let the people be able to breathe a little bit. I can’t imagine having a family and bills, because realistically, you probably gotta start looking for another job.”

From Los Angeles Times

“We’re on pins and needles, mate,” said Mother.

From Literature

Related Words

• anxious
• apprehensive
• edgy
• excitable
• fidgety
• jumpy
• panicky
• restless
• shaky
• skittish
• spooked
• tense
• uneasy
• uptight