het up

adjective

ˈhet-ˈəp How to pronounce het up (audio)
Definition of het upnext
as in worried
feeling or showing uncomfortable feelings of uncertainty it won't do you any good to get all het up before the tryouts and lose sleep

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of het up As for the airport tray aesthetic, while people might be getting het up at the idea of Gen Z holding up the line for some navel-gazing, the US Transport Security Administration is sanguine about the risk. — Maureen O'Hare, CNN, 8 Sep. 2024 Something about unfolding Bennifer events, this rekindling of an old flame, has got all of us het up. — Raven Smith, Vogue, 16 June 2021 In a normal December, people would be more concerned with the holidays and a busy schedule and wouldn't get this het up with Congress. — Arkansas Online, 28 Dec. 2020 Cultural appropriation is one of the issues that gets hft most het up. — Vanessa Friedman, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for het up
  1. worried
  2. upset
  3. anxious
  4. nervous
  5. ill at ease
  6. troubled
  7. uneasy
Adjective
  • When Republican lawmakers secured cuts to the United States' largest food assistance program last year, Paige Shoemaker DeMio wasn't worried about children going hungry just at home — but at school.
    — Juliana Kim, NPR, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Mattfeld is excellent in what could easily have been a thankless role, playing Ricky with the mien of someone who is always holding it together, years of disappointment and condescension and expectation keeping her eyes worried and jaw tight.
    — Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of worried
Adjective
  • An upset victory in Alaska for Democrats would be a massive step toward achieving that goal.
    — Joey Garrison, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Clancy appeared upset during the sidebar but returned to the defense table with a stoic expression.
    — Rebecca Cohen, NBC news, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of upset
Adjective
  • History suggests that anxious allies who are not reassured by their more powerful patron will invest in their own defense.
    — JENNIFER KAVANAGH, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2026
  • For me, Sliman was pouring water on a dormant seed anxious to sprout.
    — Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of anxious
Adjective
  • The letter writer is almost 40 and nervous about living with a romantic partner for the first time.
    — Shane O’Neill, Washington Post, 3 Sep. 2026
  • That energy spike is reinforcing inflation worries in a bond market already nervous about America’s $40 trillion mountain of debt.
    — Matt Egan, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of nervous
Adjective
  • Dr Hoggett’s office was in a hospital across town, a building with long corridors, low ceilings, handwashing stations and works of art that were at once innocuous and ill at ease.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2026
  • The squad were simultaneously in awe, and ill at ease.
    — Nick Miller, New York Times, 17 June 2026
Definition of ill at ease
Adjective
  • The engaging biopic tracks Davidson's troubled upbringing to finding a way as an adult to deal with his condition and discover needed confidence.
    — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Watching myself in the insightful new doc Boorman and the Devil, about the troubled 1977 sequel to The Exorcist, was a very strange experience.
    — Britina Cheng, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of troubled
Adjective
  • As the video popped up on social media and the Spanish-language Facebook group Danbury Al Dia, Hernandez grew uneasy.
    — Laura Tillman, Hartford Courant, 31 Aug. 2026
  • In addition to Cima and her father, the film centers on Hig and Bangley (Josh Brolin), two very different men whose uneasy partnership is shaped by the harsh realities of their new world.
    — Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of uneasy

Browse Nearby Words

heteronomy
het up
hew
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Het up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/het%20up. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of apiary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All