as in worry
disapproving
worried talk or behavior
There has been a lot of silly hand-wringing over the latest hike in interest rates.
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Recent Examples of hand-wringing
There was a fair bit of hand-wringing entering Tuesday’s contest about where or if Jeff Skinner fit into the equation.
—
Daniel Nugent-Bowman, The Athletic, 31 Dec. 2024
While hand-wringing Democrats and the media have focused on President Biden, Donald Trump met with Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister.
—Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 18 July 2024
Please, no more contrived hand-wringing and pearl-clutching about the Trump dictatorship.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 July 2024
Since last Monday, when Buckingham Palace announced that King Charles III had been diagnosed with cancer, the seventy-five-year-old monarch has been the subject of both hand-wringing concern and frenzied speculation.
—Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 12 Feb. 2024
Today, that hand-wringing delay has been nearly eliminated.
—Katie Palmer, STAT, 1 Dec. 2023
The combination of the new stadium, hand-wringing fans and — worst of all — disinterested indifference in the community has ripple effects beyond one locker room.
—Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Nov. 2023
Both episodes benefit from a curiosity about human nature that goes beyond hand-wringing monologues about our capacity for greed or complacency, and an affection for people in all our absurd and messy glory.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Mar. 2023
For all the hand-wringing Kidd does about getting his team back together, Doncic has played in 57 of 69 games.
—Tim Cowlishaw, Dallas News, 14 Mar. 2023
Daniel Nugent-Bowman, The Athletic, 31 Dec. 2024
While hand-wringing Democrats and the media have focused on President Biden, Donald Trump met with Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister.
—Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 18 July 2024
Please, no more contrived hand-wringing and pearl-clutching about the Trump dictatorship.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 July 2024
Since last Monday, when Buckingham Palace announced that King Charles III had been diagnosed with cancer, the seventy-five-year-old monarch has been the subject of both hand-wringing concern and frenzied speculation.
—Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 12 Feb. 2024
Today, that hand-wringing delay has been nearly eliminated.
—Katie Palmer, STAT, 1 Dec. 2023
The combination of the new stadium, hand-wringing fans and — worst of all — disinterested indifference in the community has ripple effects beyond one locker room.
—Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Nov. 2023
Both episodes benefit from a curiosity about human nature that goes beyond hand-wringing monologues about our capacity for greed or complacency, and an affection for people in all our absurd and messy glory.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Mar. 2023
For all the hand-wringing Kidd does about getting his team back together, Doncic has played in 57 of 69 games.
—Tim Cowlishaw, Dallas News, 14 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hand-wringing
Noun
-
Eventually, optimism and relief won over fears and worries, rallying stocks.—
Yeo Boon Ping,
CNBC,
14 Feb. 2025
-
Democrats have criticized the group’s reach, expressing worry that Musk has too much control over governmental operations.—
Ross O'Keefe,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
12 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
The July incident in Butler, Pennsylvania, raised significant concerns about coordination between local and federal law enforcement.—
Yaakov Katz,
Newsweek,
9 Feb. 2025
-
Following a similar antisemitic rant in 2022, which raised concerns for West’s mental wellbeing, the artist released an apology in Hebrew the next year.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
9 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Yes, but: Heightened anxiety amid the administration's immigration crackdown has triggered dips in school attendance nationwide.—
Alex Golden,
Axios,
11 Feb. 2025
-
The headline result here is pretty clear: people who are more physically active are less likely to suffer from depression and anxiety now and in the future.—
Alex Hutchinson,
Outside Online,
9 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
That was the startling observation of one seasoned producer, reflecting confidentially on the panic among his peers since the turn of the year.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
11 Feb. 2025
-
Government officials have hastened to quell any panic.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
TIME,
11 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Much of the anguish of losing that first Super Bowl was eclipsed by winning that one.—
Vahe Gregorian,
Kansas City Star,
31 Jan. 2025
-
Stripping citizens of their homeland and rendering them perpetual refugees does not move us closer to a permanent political solution but rather repels and fuels tormented sentiments of anguish, and thus reactions in the form of violence out of vengeance.—
Joel Thayer,
Newsweek,
26 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Volodymyr Zelensky spoke in a week when a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US counterpart Donald Trump raised fears in Kyiv that it was being frozen out of negotiations, with the White House also downplaying the prospects of Ukraine joining NATO.—
Caitlin Danaher,
CNN,
15 Feb. 2025
-
People often dream of taking that leap, but many are hampered by the fears of what might be.—
Josh Hammer,
Newsweek,
15 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
The pause came as President Trump has been elbowing Powell to keep cutting rates to spur economic growth, reviving tensions between the White House and the Fed that were a hallmark of Trump’s first term.—
The Hill Staff,
The Hill,
11 Feb. 2025
-
Sometimes external relationships—like close work friendships—can start to blur boundaries, create tension, and lead to (totally natural) feelings of insecurity.—
Justin Gest,
Newsweek,
11 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
San Diego could target him out of desperation after losing Ha-Seong Kim in free agency.—
Yaakov Katz,
Newsweek,
7 Feb. 2025
-
Yet, especially for women in these positions, the lines between deception, desperation, and delusion, which coexist in different ratios for each subject, are thin.—
Judy Berman,
TIME,
6 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near hand-wringing
Cite this Entry
“Hand-wringing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hand-wringing. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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