: causing worry : creating reason for worry : troubling
a worrying trend/development
a worrying question
The presence of the knife on the stage of the murder was a worrying circumstance for Wilson.—
Mark Twain
Mark Twain
worryingly
adverb
When the secretary returned, she handed us an envelope that looked worryingly official …
—Caroline Alexander
Caroline Alexander
… money held by households has risen at a worryingly slow rate over the past year …
—The Economist
The Economist
Examples of worrying in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Elevate Managers as Culture Multipliers Gallup’s 2025 report shows a worrying trend: managers are more disengaged than ever, dragging teams down with them.
—Dr. Nadya Zhexembayeva, Forbes.com, 30 July 2025
Experts say that it has so far been deployed in worrying ways—but that there is potential for positive impact.
—Andrew R. Chow, Time, 30 July 2025
The current political climate in the US, especially in regard to immigration and freedom of speech, is very worrying.
—Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 16 July 2025
More worrying than the arsenal itself, however, is Russia’s potential willingness to use it, including as a means of coercion and blackmail.
—Florence Gaub, Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for worrying
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Dr. Nadya Zhexembayeva, Forbes.com, 30 July 2025
Experts say that it has so far been deployed in worrying ways—but that there is potential for positive impact.
—Andrew R. Chow, Time, 30 July 2025
The current political climate in the US, especially in regard to immigration and freedom of speech, is very worrying.
—Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 16 July 2025
More worrying than the arsenal itself, however, is Russia’s potential willingness to use it, including as a means of coercion and blackmail.
—Florence Gaub, Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for worrying
Cite this Entry
“Worrying.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/worrying. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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