nervous

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“
He had never been very robust or strong; the secret which none save Arthur knew had gradually undermined his health, and he was subject to frequent attacks of what he called his nervous headaches.

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Definitions (32)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (6)

  1. adjective Of or relating to the nerves or nervous system: nervous tissue.
  2. adjective Stemming from or affecting the nerves or nervous system: a nervous disorder.
  3. adjective Easily agitated or distressed; high-strung or jumpy.
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Examples (50)

  • This difference of character lies, probably, close on the confines of the physical powers which move the human organism, and belongs to that amphibious organisation which we call the nervous system, which appears to be partly material, partly spiritual. —  Clausewitz, ON WAR - Book I-Chapter 3
  • The fat barrister seemed to be nervous, his birdlike mannerisms more pronounced. —  019 - Fear Cay
  • The boy was nervous, and his normally steady hands were jumping, and the little bullet accelerated to supersonic speeds, leaping across that tiny distance before striking his much bigger brother directly above his heart What Mark suspected and what Jake learned for himself was that even tiny projectiles can have a terrific momentum, and although Kevlar can absorb a bullet, it eats only a portion of the energy. —  FSF, August 2006
  • Sofia was nervous, and she thought Minerva looked uneasy too. —  The BROTHERHOOD of the HOLY SHRO
  • The captain sounded nervous, and right before he signed off, he shouted something abrupt at his copilot. —  UglyAmericans
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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

anxious ·  sudden ·  mental ·  weak ·  uneasy ·  gentle
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English, sinewy, containing nerves, from Latin nervōsus, sinewy, from nervus, sinew; see nerve.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. = French nerveux = Spanish Portuguese Italian nervoso, from Latin nervosus, full of sinews or fibers, sinewy, nervous, vigorous, from nervus, sinew, nerve: see nerve.
 

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/ˈnərvəs/
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