worrisome

adjective

wor·​ri·​some ˈwər-ē-səm How to pronounce worrisome (audio)
ˈwə-rē-
1
: causing distress or worry
worrisome news
2
: inclined to worry or fret
investors feeling worrisome
worrisomely adverb
worrisomeness noun

Examples of worrisome in a Sentence

There is the worrisome possibility of hurricane damage on the coast. the patient's erratic behavior has become increasingly worrisome
Recent Examples on the Web Such gaps are especially worrisome because the limited research that’s out there shows that, among transgender children, the onset of puberty without access to puberty blockers is associated with greater gender dysphoria, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. Alexa Lee, STAT, 7 Mar. 2024 Far more worrisome pockets of discontent exist for both candidates. Lisa Lerer, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024 The issues were different, Winn explained, with last year being a case of overuse and this spring ramping up velocity too rapidly, but nevertheless multiple elbow injuries are worrisome. Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2024 Still, the threat was especially worrisome to the community as emotions from a tragic and violent shooting more than two years ago are still raw and, in some ways, reliving what happened as the criminal cases now make their way through the courts. Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 26 Feb. 2024 However, experts say the bans are a worrisome trend and will make achieving that goal more expensive as developers are forced to move projects to less windy and sunny areas. Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2024 An even more worrisome prospect is that an adversarial hacker could break a military’s LLM and prompt it to spill out its data sets from the back end. Gerrit De Vynck, Washington Post, 20 Feb. 2024 During the Clinton administration, independent radical Islamist terrorist groups had emerged as an increasingly worrisome threat. Gideon Rose, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024 Staffing shortages remain the top challenge for restaurants, but the drop in sales from 2022 to 2023 reported by half the nation’s restaurant owners is a worrisome second. Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 20 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'worrisome.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1833, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of worrisome was in 1833

Dictionary Entries Near worrisome

Cite this Entry

“Worrisome.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/worrisome. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

worrisome

adjective
wor·​ri·​some ˈwər-ē-səm How to pronounce worrisome (audio)
ˈwə-rē-
1
: causing worry
worrisome news
2
: given to worrying
worrisome parents

More from Merriam-Webster on worrisome

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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