ner ‧ vous S3 W3 /ˈnɜːvəs $ ˈnɜːr-/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Word Family: adjective : ↑ nervous , ↑ nerveless , ↑ nerve-racking , ↑ nervy , ↑ unnerving ; noun : ↑ nerve , nerves, ↑ nervousness ; verb : ↑ nerve , ↑ unnerve ; adverb : ↑ nervously ]
1 . worried or frightened about something, and unable to relax ⇨ anxious
nervous about
She was so nervous about her exams that she couldn’t sleep.
I wish you’d stop looking at me like that. You’re making me nervous.
feel/get nervous
Paul always gets nervous whenever he has to give a presentation.
nervous smile/laugh/look/glance
‘Don’t be silly,’ she said with a nervous laugh. ‘There’s no such thing as ghosts.’
By the time I got into the interview I was a nervous wreck (=was extremely nervous) .
nervous of
We were all a bit nervous of him at first (=frightened of him) .
2 . often becoming worried or frightened, and easily upset:
She’s a nervous, sensitive child.
The film is unsuitable for people of a nervous disposition (=who are easily frightened) .
3 . [only before noun] related to the nerves in your body
nervous condition/illness/disorder
She was suffering from a nervous condition.
He had a nervous twitch (=his body made small uncontrolled movements) .
4 . nervous exhaustion/strain a mental condition in which you feel very tired, usually caused by working too hard or by a difficult emotional problem
—nervously adverb :
She smiled nervously.
—nervousness noun [uncountable] :
Mike’s nervousness showed in his voice.
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COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ feel nervous
He looked at her for so long that she began to feel nervous.
▪ get/become nervous
Everyone gets nervous before a big game.
▪ seem/appear nervous
She seemed nervous at first, but her presentation was good.
▪ look/sound nervous
He sounded nervous and uncertain.
▪ make somebody nervous
Being alone in the house made her nervous.
■ adverbs
▪ slightly nervous
Looking slightly nervous, Paul began to speak.
▪ a little/a bit nervous
I was a little nervous before the interview.
▪ extremely nervous
The policeman noticed that the driver seemed extremely nervous.
■ nouns
▪ a nervous smile/laugh/giggle
‘It doesn’t matter,’ she said, with a nervous smile.
▪ nervous laughter
His comment was met with nervous laughter.
▪ a nervous look/glance
Lucy swallowed as she sent him a nervous glance.
▪ nervous tension (=a feeling of being very tense and nervous)
It was the play’s opening night, and Gloria was in a state of nervous tension.
■ phrases
▪ be a nervous wreck (=be so nervous or worried that you cannot deal with a situation)
By the end of the rehearsal I was a nervous wreck.
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THESAURUS
▪ nervous worried or a little frightened about something and unable to relax:
Kelly was so nervous about her exam that she couldn’t sleep.
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It makes me nervous when you drive that fast.
▪ tense worried and unable to relax in a way that makes you get angry or upset easily:
Mary’s problems at work were making her tense and irritable.
▪ uneasy nervous because you feel that something bad might happen, so that you are unable to relax until the danger has passed:
I began to feel uneasy when he still hadn’t phoned by 11 o'clock.
▪ on edge if you are on edge or your nerves are on edge, you feel nervous because you are worried about what might happen:
My nerves were on edge, waiting for the results of the test.
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Redundancies and other work upheavals have put employees on edge.
▪ neurotic nervous and anxious in a way that is not normal or reasonable:
She’s completely neurotic about food hygiene.
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a neurotic mother
▪ edgy/jumpy/jittery nervous because you are worried about what might happen:
Investors are a little edgy about the financial markets these days.
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There was a lot of pressure on the team tonight and that’s why they were a little jumpy.
▪ highly-strung British English , high-strung American English becoming nervous or upset easily because that is your character:
Like many musicians, he’s very sensitive and highly-strung.
▪ be a nervous wreck to feel extremely nervous and unable to relax:
After 10 months of teaching, I was a total nervous wreck.
▪ have butterflies (in your stomach) informal to feel nervous about something that you are going to do very soon because it is important and you want to do it well:
Actors often have butterflies before going on stage.