worried well

British

noun

informal the people who do not need medical treatment, but who visit the doctor to be reassured, or with emotional problems

"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

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.

He had shaped this CCC into a model agency, and if his kids were worried, well, he’d do something about it.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 15, 2024

At the same time, sources have expressed concerns about the "worried well" - people applying for tests unnecessarily even if they don't have the relevant symptoms.

From BBC • Sep. 16, 2020

But when the volume of non-covid patients dropped precipitously, we knew the worried well didn’t make up that large of our patient population.

From Slate • Apr. 24, 2020

Others constitute the worried well, who need only a bit of psychological first aid.

From New York Times • Apr. 9, 2020

But when she was once more at work for her Miss Mary Wadsmith, all the good effect of these several months of rest were soon worked and worried well away.

From Three Lives Stories of The Good Anna, Melanctha and The Gentle Lena by Stein, Gertrude

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