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Synonyms

jumpy

American  
[juhm-pee] / ˈdʒʌm pi /

adjective

jumpier, jumpiest

  1. subject to sudden, involuntary starts, especially from nervousness, fear, excitement, etc.

    Synonyms:
    fidgety, skittish, jittery

  2. characterized by sudden starts, jerks, or jumps.

    a jumpy narrative.
jumpy British  
/ ˈdʒʌmpɪ /

adjective

  1. nervous or apprehensive

  2. moving jerkily or fitfully

"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

Other Word Forms

  • jumpily adverb
  • jumpiness noun

Etymology

Origin of jumpy

First recorded in 1865–70; jump + -y 1

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.

As rates retreated from recent highs, investors have gotten jumpy at reports of troubled corporate borrowers.

From Barron's

She was still real jumpy about having that snake around her wrist.

From Literature

Sleep eluded me that weekend, and by that Sunday night, long after everyone went to bed, I lay on my cot, sluggish and jumpy, with my covers tossed off.

From Literature

The logistical obstacle course they would need to navigate for the evacuation included soothing jumpy horses, scrambling for last-minute cargo flights and navigating Belgian bureaucracy.

From The Wall Street Journal

A bad week on Wall Street makes him jumpier than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

From Los Angeles Times

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.