worrywart
See also: worry-wart and worry wart
English edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
From worry + wart, apparently chosen for alliteration. Presumably related to earlier worryguts. Attested 1956,[1] but earlier examples are found in newspapers of the 1930s and 1940s.[2]
Pronunciation edit
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈwʌɹ.ɪˌwɔːt/
- (General Australian) IPA(key): /ˈwʌɹ.iˌwɔːt/
Audio (AU) (file)
- (US) IPA(key): /ˈwʌɹ.iˌwoɹt/
(accents without the hurry–furry merger)Audio (US) (file)
- (US) IPA(key): /ˈwɚ.iˌwoɹt/
(accents with the hurry–furry merger)Audio (US) (file)
- Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)t
Noun edit
worrywart (plural worrywarts)
- (originally US) A person who worries excessively, especially about unimportant matters.
- Synonyms: bundle of nerves, worrier; see also Thesaurus:worrier
- 2005, Hal Edward Runkel, Screamfree Parenting: Raising Your Kids by Keeping Your Cool, →ISBN, page 31:
- It doesn't mean you're a worrywart, a nervous wreck or in need of heavy medication.
- 2008 August 17, Nicole L.V. Mullis, “Vacation renders kids, adult males impervious to danger”, in Battle Creek Enquirer[1]:
- On vacation, I'm a worrywart for fretting about third-degree burns and puncture wounds.
- 2020 December 7, Zeynep Tufekci, “‘This Must Be Your First’”, in The Atlantic[2]:
- When Biden takes the presidential oath in January, many will write articles scolding those who expressed concern about a coup as worrywarts, or as people misusing terminology.
Translations edit
person who worries excessively
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See also edit
References edit
- ^ Oxford English Dictionary, 1884–1928, and First Supplement, 1933.
- ^ Word Craft Forum: Worry Wort
- Jonathon Green (2024) “worry wart n.”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang