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Synonyms

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.”

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.

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.

“We waited on pins and needles for 12 days,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2024

“So, everyone is kinda sitting on pins and needles, hoping no one comes in at the last second.”

From Seattle Times • May 12, 2023

"We're on pins and needles to see if Powell will say anything that suggests they will taper the size of rate increases going forward," Hogan said, referring to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

From Reuters • Oct. 31, 2022

“We were on pins and needles wondering, OK, if this virus gets into the mountain gorillas, what’s it going to do?”

From New York Times • Feb. 21, 2022

I walked on pins and needles every day, waiting for him to take his revenge.

From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss

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.