worrywart en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
- /ˈwʌɹ.iˌwoɹt/ (US)
- /ˈwɚ.iˌwoɹt/ (US)
- /ˈwʌɹ.iˌwɔːt/ (Australia)
- (New-England) audio non-hurry-furry
- /ˈwʌɹ.ɪˌwɔːt/ (UK)
- (US) audio hurry-furry
Etymology
From worry + wart, apparently chosen for alliteration. Presumably related to earlier worryguts. Attested 1956, but earlier examples are found in newspapers of the 1930s and 1940s.
Meanings
-
A person who worries excessively, especially about unimportant matters.
It doesn't mean you're a worrywart, a nervous wreck or in need of heavy medication.
2005, Hal Edward Runkel, Screamfree Parenting: Raising Your Kids by Keeping Your Cool, →ISBN, page 31:When Biden takes the presidential oath in January, many will write articles scolding those who expressed concern about a coup as worrywarts, or as people misusing terminology.
2020 December 7, Zeynep Tufekci, “‘This Must Be Your First’”, in The Atlantic:On vacation, I'm a worrywart for fretting about third-degree burns and puncture wounds.
2008 August 17, Nicole L.V. Mullis, “Vacation renders kids, adult males impervious to danger”, in Battle Creek Enquirer:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| worry wart | alternative | lexicographic | |
| worry-wart | alternative | lexicographic | |
| worrywarts | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Relateds
pessimist · hypochondriac · OCD
Synonyms
wiener · bundle of nerves · bundle of nerves · worrywart · nervous wreck · worrier · nervous Nellie · worryguts · worrier · jitterbug · bag of nerves · obsessive · tightass · neurotic
Translations (15)
fi huolehtija (person who worries excessively) · cmn 杞人憂天的人 /杞人忧天的人 (person who worries excessively) · fi murehtija (person who worries excessively) · de Schwarzseher (person who worries excessively) · de Schwarzmaler (person who worries excessively) · fr angoissé (person who worries excessively) · da sortseer (person who worries excessively) · hu vészmadár (person who worries excessively) · pl kłębek nerwów (person who worries excessively) · hu aggodalmaskodó (person who worries excessively) · et põdeja (person who worries excessively) · sv pessimist (person who worries excessively) · sv dystergök (person who worries excessively) · ru комо́к не́рвов (person who worries excessively) · nb svartseer (person who worries excessively)