OVERANXIOUS Synonyms: 105 Similar and Opposite Words

overanxious

adjective

Definition of overanxious

as in anxious

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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 overanxious But Withers, a 24-year-old UNC graduate student who once starred at North Mecklenburg High, got overanxious at just the wrong time. — Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 15 Mar. 2025 Advertisement Perhaps overanxious at the plate with so much on the table, the Mets left the bases loaded in the first and second and stranded eight runners overall through the first five innings. — Mike Fitzpatrick, Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2024 Doncic might sling a pass across the span of an overanxious defense, to an unmarked teammate in the distant corner. — Robert O'Connell, WSJ, 22 Dec. 2022 In the wake of humiliation in Afghanistan, would Washington be overanxious to demonstrate America’s continuing strength? — Washington Post, 29 Oct. 2021 In our overanxious age, worrying is sometimes now associated with the problem of overparenting. — Perri Klass, Harper's Magazine, 25 May 2021 But his presence was charming, like an overanxious kid brother who nonetheless puts everyone at ease. — Bill Pennington, New York Times, 19 Sep. 2020

Recent Examples of Synonyms for overanxious

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

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

Admittedly, viewers on the festival circuit, like those in Locarno where this debuted, and folks who might catch it on streamers or in niche distribution are unlikely to be very bothered about the film’s lack of impartiality.

— Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 18 Aug. 2026
Rumpled lengths ooze insouciance, radiating a can't-be-bothered energy that, for some, is far cooler than even the bounciest blowout.

— Calin Van Paris, InStyle, 4 July 2026

Definition of bothered

Adjective

With Mason Gooding, Chase Sui Wonders, Daveed Diggs, and pop star Charli XCX playing against type as Elliot’s uptight girlfriend.

— Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 31 July 2026
Could anyone else be as uptight as Alan Ruck’s Cameron in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off?

— Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 21 July 2026

Definition of uptight

Adjective

The group — made up of high-strung news freelancer Billie (Lucy Freyer), chaotic diva Issa (Amita Rao), and life-of-the-party Anton (Owen Thiele) — are all at different places in love, life, and career.

— CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 25 Aug. 2026
But gone was the tension of worrying about pleasing a high-strung, perfectionist host.

— Merrill Markoe, Deadline, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of high-strung

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

But Timeless is the first release of unheard recordings since 2023, and fans grew restless in the interim, circulating petitions and open letters asking for more from Prince’s storied vaults.

— Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 28 Aug. 2026
Turner played a restless man drafted into the British Army in the years after World War II.

— L. Sue Baugh, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of restless

Adjective

Some help surgeons operate with greater precision, while others disinfect rooms, transport supplies, assist patients during rehabilitation, or provide comfort to people who are distressed.

— Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026
Those zones cover economically distressed communities targeted for job creation and private investment.

— Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of distressed

Browse Nearby Words

over and over

overanxious

overarching

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“Overanxious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overanxious. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of overanxious

adjective

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