"worrywart" meaning in English

See worrywart in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

IPA: /ˈwʌɹ.ɪˌwɔːt/ [UK], /ˈwʌɹ.iˌwɔːt/ [General-Australian], /ˈwʌɹ.iˌwoɹt/ [US], /ˈwɚ.iˌwoɹt/ [US] Audio: en-au-worrywart.ogg [Australia], en-us-ne-worrywart.ogg [US], en-us-worrywart.ogg [US] Forms: worrywarts [plural]
Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)t 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. Etymology templates: {{com|en|worry|wart}} worry + wart, {{m|en|alliteration}} alliteration, {{m|en|worryguts}} worryguts Head templates: {{en-noun}} worrywart (plural worrywarts)
  1. (originally US) A person who worries excessively, especially about unimportant matters. Categories (topical): People, Personality Synonyms: bundle of nerves, worrier, worrier, worry wart, worry-wart Related terms: pessimist, OCD, hypochondriac Translations (person who worries excessively): 杞人憂天的人 (Chinese Mandarin), 杞人忧天的人 (qǐrényōutiān de rén) (Chinese Mandarin), sortseer [common-gender] (Danish), põdeja (Estonian), murehtija (Finnish), huolehtija (Finnish), angoissé (French), Schwarzseher [masculine] (German), Schwarzmaler [masculine] (German), vészmadár (Hungarian), aggodalmaskodó (Hungarian), svartseer (Norwegian Bokmål), kłębek nerwów [masculine] (Polish), комо́к не́рвов (komók nérvov) (Russian), dystergök [common-gender] (Swedish), pessimist [common-gender] (Swedish)

Inflected forms

Alternative forms

Download JSON data for worrywart meaning in English (5.7kB)

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          "ref": "2008 August 17, Nicole L.V. Mullis, “Vacation renders kids, adult males impervious to danger”, in Battle Creek Enquirer",
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        "A person who worries excessively, especially about unimportant matters."
      ],
      "id": "en-worrywart-en-noun-30m7VezM",
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        "(originally US) A person who worries excessively, especially about unimportant matters."
      ],
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          "word": "bundle of nerves"
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        {
          "word": "worrier"
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          "word": "worry wart"
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          "word": "worry-wart"
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        {
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "杞人憂天的人"
        },
        {
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "qǐrényōutiān de rén",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "杞人忧天的人"
        },
        {
          "code": "da",
          "lang": "Danish",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "sortseer"
        },
        {
          "code": "et",
          "lang": "Estonian",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "põdeja"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "murehtija"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "huolehtija"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "angoissé"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Schwarzseher"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Schwarzmaler"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "vészmadár"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "aggodalmaskodó"
        },
        {
          "code": "nb",
          "lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "svartseer"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "kłębek nerwów"
        },
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          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "komók nérvov",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "word": "комо́к не́рвов"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "dystergök"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "person who worries excessively",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
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        }
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      "ipa": "/ˈwʌɹ.iˌwɔːt/",
      "tags": [
        "General-Australian"
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    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈwʌɹ.iˌwoɹt/",
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    {
      "ipa": "/ˈwɚ.iˌwoɹt/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
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      "rhymes": "-ɔː(ɹ)t"
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  "etymology_text": "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.",
  "forms": [
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        "Rhymes:English/ɔː(ɹ)t",
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          "type": "quotation"
        },
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          "ref": "2008 August 17, Nicole L.V. Mullis, “Vacation renders kids, adult males impervious to danger”, in Battle Creek Enquirer",
          "text": "On vacation, I'm a worrywart for fretting about third-degree burns and puncture wounds.",
          "type": "quotation"
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        {
          "ref": "2020 December 7, Zeynep Tufekci, “‘This Must Be Your First’”, in The Atlantic",
          "text": "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.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A person who worries excessively, especially about unimportant matters."
      ],
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          "worry"
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        [
          "excessively",
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        "(originally US) A person who worries excessively, especially about unimportant matters."
      ],
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          "word": "bundle of nerves"
        },
        {
          "word": "worrier"
        },
        {
          "word": "worrier"
        }
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      "tags": [
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      "ipa": "/ˈwʌɹ.iˌwɔːt/",
      "tags": [
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      ]
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    {
      "ipa": "/ˈwʌɹ.iˌwoɹt/",
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    {
      "ipa": "/ˈwɚ.iˌwoɹt/",
      "tags": [
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      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/En-au-worrywart.ogg",
      "tags": [
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  "synonyms": [
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      "word": "worry wart"
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    {
      "word": "worry-wart"
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  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "杞人憂天的人"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "qǐrényōutiān de rén",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "杞人忧天的人"
    },
    {
      "code": "da",
      "lang": "Danish",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "sortseer"
    },
    {
      "code": "et",
      "lang": "Estonian",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "põdeja"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "murehtija"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "huolehtija"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "angoissé"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Schwarzseher"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Schwarzmaler"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "vészmadár"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "aggodalmaskodó"
    },
    {
      "code": "nb",
      "lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "svartseer"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "kłębek nerwów"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "komók nérvov",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "word": "комо́к не́рвов"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "dystergök"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "person who worries excessively",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "pessimist"
    }
  ],
  "word": "worrywart"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-01 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-21 using wiktextract (f4fd8c9 and c9440ce). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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