uptight
tense, nervous, or jittery.
annoyed or angry.
stiffly conventional in manner or attitudes.
Origin of uptight
1Other words from uptight
- up·tight·ness, noun
Words Nearby uptight
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use uptight in a sentence
An Ethiopian woman stands in front of a young boy, her left arm extended in perfectly perpendicular contrast to her uptight frame.
In the galleries: Photos capture a fleeting moment, leave an indelible impression | Mark Jenkins | September 10, 2021 | Washington PostShe had no time for the idea that kids came second to public duty, or for the uptight Windsor repression of personal feelings in public.
With Lilibet and Archie, Harry and Meghan Aim to Break the Cycle of Painful Royal Parenting | Clive Irving | June 6, 2021 | The Daily BeastHe’s fearless, bold, unafraid to shock people by saying what others think, while Guy is straitlaced, uptight, and seething beneath his polite exterior.
Because there wasn’t too much political interference and people uptight about all kinds of stuff.
There Are Mounting Calls for a Boycott of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Will It Be Effective? | Charlie Campbell / Shanghai | March 9, 2021 | TimeI’m an uptight Brit, I don’t tell people stuff about my life.
The BBC’s Katty Kay Shuts Down Men Who ‘Tell Me to Shut Up’ | Eugene Robinson | January 23, 2021 | Ozy
“It paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys,” she said.
Read another way, she is a horrible mother, an uptight snob, and a bit of a shrew.
Colm Toibin Describes The Creation Of His Quiet Masterpiece ‘Nora Webster’ | Jennie Yabroff | November 3, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTOne of the characters I played was an uptight whackjob, so that was probably written for me.
'SNL' Star Kate McKinnon's Big, 'Awesome,' Emmy-Nominated Year | Kevin Fallon | August 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAll of this makes even the most well-meaning junior soldier more confused and more uptight.
Why These Marines Love ‘Frozen’—and Why It Matters | Aaron B. O’Connell | June 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe producers were looking to start a fight between the laid-back Sebastian and Camille, his uptight counterpart.
The Surreal Genius of Bravo’s Rich Kids Docudrama ‘NYC Prep’ | Amy Zimmerman | April 23, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTShe is slender, immaculately dressed, and—as Dr. Feldman could see immediately—rigid and very uptight about herself.
When You Don't Know Where to Turn | Steven J. Bartlett
British Dictionary definitions for uptight
/ (ʌpˈtaɪt) /
displaying tense repressed nervousness, irritability, or anger
unable to give expression to one's feelings, personality, etc
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
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