Synonyms

worried sick

Idioms

Also, worried to death. Extremely anxious, as in Her parents were worried sick when she didn't come home all night, or We've been worried to death about the drop in the stock market. These somewhat hyperbolic phrases (one could conceivably feel ill from worrying but would hardly die from it) date from the second half of the 1800s.

Example Sentences

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worried sick

Sir Keir, who chaired a meeting of the government's emergency committee Cobra on Thursday, acknowledged that people are "worried sick about their family and friends who are caught up in this".

From BBC ● Mar. 5, 2026

The other three are native-born Americans, but she's worried sick every time they leave the house.

From Barron's ● Feb. 1, 2026

Once upon a time, not long ago, Elon Musk was worried sick about climate change.

From Slate ● Mar. 28, 2025

He said: "He's the same age as me and he's worried sick of how it's going to be in the future for him."

From BBC ● Jan. 10, 2025

“Resourceful girl, that one. Found her way back, told me the whole story. She’s worried sick, you know.”

From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

worried sick

Example Sentences

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