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Synonym Chooser

How is the word anxious distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of anxious are athirst, avid, eager, and keen. While all these words mean "moved by a strong and urgent desire or interest," anxious emphasizes fear of frustration or failure or disappointment.

anxious not to make a social blunder

When would athirst be a good substitute for anxious?

Although the words athirst and anxious have much in common, athirst stresses yearning but not necessarily readiness for action.

athirst for adventure

How do avid and eager relate to one another, in the sense of anxious?

Avid adds to eager the implication of insatiability or greed.

avid for new thrills

When is eager a more appropriate choice than anxious?

The synonyms eager and anxious are sometimes interchangeable, but eager implies ardor and enthusiasm and sometimes impatience at delay or restraint.

eager to get started

Where would keen be a reasonable alternative to anxious?

While the synonyms keen and anxious are close in meaning, keen suggests intensity of interest and quick responsiveness in action.

keen on the latest fashions

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 anxious Related article More kids are anxious but fewer are getting the right help, study shows CNN: How can parents practice self-empathy and teach it to their children? Evans: Most parents are exceedingly hard on themselves. Shannon Carpenter, CNN, 11 Feb. 2025 The Pac-12 is anxious about getting an eighth all-sports school. Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 9 Feb. 2025 But there was one major difference between the two groups, the official noted: While the Kenyans were anxious for their livelihoods, the Americans were worried about their country. Declan Walsh, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2025 Some stayed for years before passing away, and nurses cared for patients who were often depressed or anxious about their future. Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 8 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for anxious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anxious
Adjective
  • That’s a lot of CO2, something airlines are increasingly worried about.
    Jackie Snow, Quartz, 18 Feb. 2025
  • Extending safety Kyle Hamilton is likely a top priority for the Ravens' front office, but Hamilton isn't too worried about his contract.
    Brian Wacker, Baltimore Sun, 18 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • The resolution is seeking $4.5 trillion in tax breaks and $2 trillion in spending cuts over the next 10 years, measures that have met opposition from Democrats and made some Republicans uneasy.
    Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
  • In my conversations with barbecue people, there was often uneasy tension about whether craft barbecue is something new or a return to an old way of doing things.
    Rachel Monroe, The New Yorker, 22 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • In the meantime, the trio are excited to be reunited onstage again.
    Kate Lloyd, Vogue, 20 Feb. 2025
  • At the time it was streamed, the crew was excited to see dozens of viewers tune in.
    Kalhan Rosenblatt, NBC News, 20 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Atop all this, Floria is charged with supervising nervous, error-prone student nurse Amelie (Selma) — tempers fray as precious time runs out.
    Guy Lodge, Variety, 17 Feb. 2025
  • In the final round, a nervous Castle missed his first four dunk attempts for his first dunk of the round, before finishing with pizzaz on a between-the-legs up-and-under one-handed flush.
    Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 16 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Warning: The following story elements, including photos and video, may be disturbing to some readers.
    Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 21 Feb. 2025
  • The feature take is set amidst the 4th of July celebration, as a disturbing figure named Tommy Taffy emerges.
    Matt Grobar, Deadline, 19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Despite the grim proceedings and grubby environment, the spatial arrangement of the image brings to mind a theatre balcony packed with eager punters ready to consume their money’s worth of entertainment.
    Naomi Fry, The New Yorker, 22 Feb. 2025
  • The obvious concern is that such a move could result in a loss of business, as there are always plenty of young publicists who are struggling to build their brands and eager to add a famous name to their client list without being too picky about contract terms.
    James Hibberd, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • And the charge Jones drew on Bogdan Bogdanović with 1:53 remaining set the table for the Bulls to attempt — and, ultimately, fail — to pull off the upset win.
    Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 27 Feb. 2025
  • The flip side to that is that an upset loss to either would be a death blow.
    Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 26 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • The game got tense in the third with the Spartans holding a 21-point lead.
    Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 16 Feb. 2025
  • But just as life should be settling down, the world around them is growing more tense.
    Max Goldbart, Deadline, 13 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Anxious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anxious. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.

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