as in paranoid
having or showing a very nervous or disordered state of mind
Her neurotic tendencies tend to manifest in her obsessive need for cleanliness. Our dog is a bit neurotic; she tends to panic around strangers.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of neurotic
Drawn with a spidery expressionistic line and featuring a cast of characters including the neurotic Bernard, brutish Huey and the graceful Dancer, the strip satirized social and political issues and gave voice to liberal humanist views during the culturally conservative 1950s.
—
Rob Salkowitz, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
Some parents are neurotic about validating their kids’ emotions or guarding their individuality; others fixate on maximizing their career potential.
—Stephanie H. Murray, The Atlantic, 2 Jan. 2025
In Silva’s hands, CeCe is clever and witty, neurotic and full of longing, both wise and naive.
—Patricia Karounos, refinery29.com, 21 Nov. 2024
These neurotic superheroes, played by Jang Ki-yong, Ko Du-shim, Soo Hyun and Park So-yi, appealingly face their problems and work through them to regain their powers.
—Joan MacDonald, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for neurotic 
Rob Salkowitz, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
Some parents are neurotic about validating their kids’ emotions or guarding their individuality; others fixate on maximizing their career potential.
—Stephanie H. Murray, The Atlantic, 2 Jan. 2025
In Silva’s hands, CeCe is clever and witty, neurotic and full of longing, both wise and naive.
—Patricia Karounos, refinery29.com, 21 Nov. 2024
These neurotic superheroes, played by Jang Ki-yong, Ko Du-shim, Soo Hyun and Park So-yi, appealingly face their problems and work through them to regain their powers.
—Joan MacDonald, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for neurotic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for neurotic
Adjective
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That becomes a great way to place him in a paranoid thriller, which is a genre that’s about mistrust of institutions and individuals.—
Justin Kroll,
Deadline,
14 Feb. 2025
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The process of selecting the next pope is turned into a taught, twisty, paranoid thriller.—
Sarah Shachat,
IndieWire,
12 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The counselor also told police Trotman had had a previous psychotic break in which he was found wandering the woods.—
Peter Hermann,
Washington Post,
7 Feb. 2023
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Lewis prescribed Price anti-psychotic medication after a mental health referral Sept. 1.—
Thomas Saccente,
Arkansas Online,
17 Jan. 2023
Adjective
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Is High in Antioxidants Orange juice is rich in healthy nutrients called antioxidants, compounds that help prevent cell damage from unstable molecules called free radical damage in a process known as oxidative stress.—
Aviv Joshua, MS,
Verywell Health,
11 Feb. 2025
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She had been placed in a four-cell unit with mentally unstable inmates.—
Lawrence Wright,
The New Yorker,
10 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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With the recent temporary suspensions on research grant reviews and payments for researchers and talk of mass layoffs and budget cuts at the National Science Foundation, scientists are already worried about how science funding will be affected.—
Ars Technica,
Ars Technica,
18 Feb. 2025
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That’s a lot of CO2, something airlines are increasingly worried about.—
Jackie Snow,
Quartz,
18 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Socially anxious and snobby, Victoria is dedicated to keeping her three children on the same affluent life path she's followed.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA TODAY,
18 Feb. 2025
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That is a disconcerting, even chilling prospect for sources in the news division, who see the legendary house of Murrow and Cronkite caught in the middle as controlling Paramount Global shareholder Shari Redstone is anxious to close the transaction.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
17 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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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
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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
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But Gaza — marked by decades of bloodshed — is a uniquely volatile addition to the roll call of lands whose sovereignty and assets have come under Trump’s restless eye.—
Laura King,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2025
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His output is alluded to in the film’s atmospheric credit sequence, in which a restless, scratchy charcoal pencil attacks white paper, the claustrophobia of which is intensified by the director’s intimate use of Academy ratio.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
25 Jan. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Neurotic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/neurotic. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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