as in worried
feeling or showing uncomfortable feelings of uncertainty
he has a tendency to fret and get uptight whenever his usual routine is disrupted
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Recent Examples of uptight
Charismatic slacker Raj and uptight striver Mir aren’t just foils for each other; their mutual love is unmistakable, which gives weight to the looming prospect that the stress of salvaging Baba’s empire could tear them apart.
—
Judy Berman, TIME, 6 Mar. 2025
Everything feels so uptight these days and few people seem to be amusing themselves.
—Julian Randall, Essence, 3 Mar. 2025
Maybe being a micromanager and a little uptight weren’t such horrible things after all.
—Mark Barabak, The Mercury News, 1 Jan. 2025
The chemistry between Ferrell’s uptight, by-the-books forensic accountant and Wahlberg’s aggressive, hot-headed detective drives the film’s best moments, with the latter’s exasperated reactions to the former’s bizarre behavior making the movie consistently entertaining—and, of course, hilarious.
—Travis Bean, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for uptight
Judy Berman, TIME, 6 Mar. 2025
Everything feels so uptight these days and few people seem to be amusing themselves.
—Julian Randall, Essence, 3 Mar. 2025
Maybe being a micromanager and a little uptight weren’t such horrible things after all.
—Mark Barabak, The Mercury News, 1 Jan. 2025
The chemistry between Ferrell’s uptight, by-the-books forensic accountant and Wahlberg’s aggressive, hot-headed detective drives the film’s best moments, with the latter’s exasperated reactions to the former’s bizarre behavior making the movie consistently entertaining—and, of course, hilarious.
—Travis Bean, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for uptight
Recent Examples of Synonyms for uptight
Adjective
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Others are worried about the fate of the Smithsonian more broadly.—
Deborah Barfield Berry,
USA Today,
20 Apr. 2025
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An overwhelming 92 percent are worried about a potential recession in 2025.—
Nicholas Creel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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At the same time, sellers might get nervous if deal activity slows down.—
James Nelson,
Forbes.com,
18 Apr. 2025
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At times brutal and always volatile, the album functions as a sort of electro-shock therapy applied from the shoulders down, layering hard beats, ambient whorls, and nervous acid ticks to trigger a state of full-body rapture.—
Jazz Monroe,
Pitchfork,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The Pacers pulled off an upset series win against a then No. 3 seed Bucks in six games last year without Giannis Antetokounmpo.—
Homero De la Fuente,
CNN Money,
13 Apr. 2025
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Fifty-eight percent of the bets are on Silva to win, while 71 percent of the money is on a Mitchell upset.—
Trent Reinsmith,
Forbes.com,
12 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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How to know when your dog is agitated Identifying an anxious or aggressive dog can be tricky, as negative and positive emotional indicators can often be confused.—
Karissa Waddick,
USA Today,
19 Apr. 2025
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The Fed chief said Wednesday the central bank can be patient while assessing data on inflation and employment, which are its dual mandates, while anxious consumers and businesses eye potentially prolonged economic instability.—
Alexis Simendinger,
The Hill,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Shortly after midnight on Tuesday, some attendees at the Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, started to feel uneasy.—
Larisha Paul,
Rolling Stone,
10 Apr. 2025
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But Sherrill remains uneasy about what could happen next.—
Susan Tompor,
USA Today,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Mark Pellington directs the conspiracy thriller about a troubled vet (Gladstone) struggling with addiction who is recruited by a contractor (Cranston) for a covert government plot to assassinate a high-level politician.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
9 Apr. 2025
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Believe it or not, the film's director James Hawes insists Bernthal's secret agent code name was not an intentional call-out to his current run as the late, troubled, elder Berzatto brother Mikey on TV.—
Sydney Bucksbaum,
EW.com,
9 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Uptight.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/uptight. Accessed 25 Apr. 2025.
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