Word family noun worry worrier adjective worried ≠ unworried worrying worrisome verb worry adverb worryingly worriedly
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishworriedwor‧ried /ˈwʌrid $ ˈwɜːrid/ ●●● S2 W3 adjective 1 WORRIEDunhappy because you keep thinking about a problem, or about something bad that might happen She gave me a worried look.worried about I’m really worried about my brother.worried by Local people are worried by the rise in crime.worried (that) I was worried we wouldn’t have enough money. His parents must be worried sick (=extremely worried).2 → you had me worried3 → the worried well —worriedly adverbCOLLOCATIONSadverbsvery/really worriedWe were really worried about him during the divorce.increasingly worriedThe family became increasingly worried about her safety.seriously/deeply worriedHazel was now seriously worried. Why hadn’t he come back?desperately worried (=extremely worried)All this time I was desperately worried about my family.a little/slightly worried (also a bit worried British English)I was a bit worried about my exams.not unduly worried (=not very worried)Jerry did not sound unduly worried at the prospect of going to jail.verbsbe worriedI was so worried!get/become worriedYou should have called me. I was getting worried.look worriedDon’t look so worried! It’ll be fine.phrasesworried sick/stiff (=extremely worried)Where have you been? We’ve been worried sick!nounsa worried expression/lookJohn came in with a worried look on his face.a worried frownHer worried frown deepened. THESAURUSworried not feeling happy or relaxed because you keep thinking about a problem or something bad that might happenI was worried that you had forgotten our date.It’s awful if you are worried about money.I was so worried that I couldn’t sleep at all.anxious worried because you think something bad might happen or has happened. Anxious is more formal than worried, and is often used about a general feeling of worry, when you are not sure what has happened A lot of employees are anxious about their jobs.Anxious relatives waited for news.nervous worried or frightened about something you are going to do or experience, and unable to relaxEveryone feels nervous before an exam.The thought of going into hospital was making me nervous.uneasy a little worried because you feel there may be something wrong and you are not sure what is going to happenWhen she still wasn’t home by midnight, I began to feel uneasy.The total silence was making me feel uneasy.concerned formal worried, usually about a problem affecting someone else or affecting the country or the worldMany people are concerned about the current economic situation.Police say that they are concerned for the safety of the missing girl.bothered [not before noun] worried by something that happens – often used in negative sentencesShe didn’t seem particularly bothered by the news.troubled very worried, so that you think about something a lotShe fell into a troubled sleep.a troubled expression‘Are you okay, Ben? You look troubled.’apprehensive especially written a little worried about something you are going to do, or about the future, because you are not sure what it will be likeI felt a bit apprehensive about seeing him again after so long.stressed (out) informal very worried and tired because of problems, too much work etc, and unable to relax or enjoy lifeHe’d been working ten hours a day for ages and was stressed out.an extremely stressed single mother Examples from the Corpus
worried• What's wrong? You look worried.• He's very worried about drought and very enterprising.• We're very worried about Grandma.• I'm not really worried about how much it will cost.• Marion was worried about losing her job.• And is it because of them that you're worried about the future - do you get depressed as a grandparent?• I'm getting worried because my account still hasn't registered a check I deposited a while ago.• Helen looked at me with a worried expression.• Local people there have been worried for some time about safety factors which affect the tunnel.• I was worried if I washed it, it might shrink.• She had such a worried look on her face!• They were getting that worried look you see on people's faces on the Tube.• Dave could see how worried she was, and he tried to reassure her.• He too was worried that he had been unfair to Angel.• She says she does get worried that she might miss a change.• She rushed to the station, worried that she might miss her train.• We are worried that we can't provide the level we have provided in the past.• You look worried - what's the matter?worried about• You shouldn't be so worried about your weight. 