anxiety
Americannoun
-
anxieties
plural
-
distress or uneasiness of mind caused by fear of danger or misfortune.
He felt anxiety about the possible loss of his job.
- Synonyms:
- disquiet, worry, foreboding, fear
- Antonyms:
- tranquility, serenity, certainty
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earnest but tense desire; eagerness.
He had a keen anxiety to succeed in his work.
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Psychiatry. a state of apprehension and psychic tension occurring in some forms of mental disorder.
noun
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a state of uneasiness or tension caused by apprehension of possible future misfortune, danger, etc; worry
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intense desire; eagerness
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psychol a state of intense apprehension or worry often accompanied by physical symptoms such as shaking, intense feelings in the gut, etc, common in mental illness or after a very distressing experience See also angst
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A state of apprehension and fear resulting from the anticipation of a threatening event or situation.
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◆ In psychiatry, a patient has an anxiety disorder ◆ if normal psychological functioning is disrupted or if anxiety persists without an identifiable cause.
Synonym Usage
See apprehension.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of anxiety
First recorded in 1515–25; from Latin anxietās, equivalent to anxi(us) anxious + -etās, variant of -itās before a vowel
Compare meaning
How does anxiety compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Anxiety is the vague, uneasy feeling you get when you're dreading something. Anxiety can also be a permanent state of nervousness that some people with mental illnesses experience, a milder version of panic. When a scary or unpleasant event is looming, like getting a family portrait taken the year you have braces, you might feel some anxiety. You might also feel anxiety about passing chemistry, especially if you’ve skipped a lot of classes. Someone who suffers from a mild or severe mental illness might feel anxiety all the time. Deep breathing, playing relaxing music, and medication have all been known to help reduce anxiety.
Vocabulary lists containing anxiety
The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 4
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"The Tell-Tale Heart," Vocabulary from the short story
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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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.
See Examples For:
“That anxiety comes from this kind of fear that they’re going to do something wrong,” Mansoor said.
From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2026
In recent years the National Autistic Society have issued guidance aimed at helping people with the condition cope with fireworks season, with suggestions for easing stress and anxiety.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
The selloff amplified mounting investor anxiety that Google’s biggest revenue engine is slowing as AI reshapes how consumers search—and that the costs of the global AI build-out may be outrunning the returns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
Esther San Emeterio, who is waiting for news of her brother Pepe, said the "anxiety" her family was experiencing was "crossing a line".
From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026
I join in and hope my voice doesn’t betray the anxiety coursing through me.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Intel suffered worst-ever daily decline as investors’ anxieties hit new highs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
Intel suffered its worst-ever daily decline as investors’ anxieties hit new highs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
In the run-up to the protests on Saturday, the Paris police commissioner, Patrice Faure, heightened anxieties by advising merchants to hire security guards, saying police alone could not “guarantee the protection of every business.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
It’s easy to paint your wish to pay off the mortgage as an emotional one, because you have been open about your anxieties, hopes and concerns.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026
The high-cheating holidays are fraught with miscellaneous anxieties and the high expectations of loved ones.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
