Definition of anxietynext
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Synonym Chooser

How is the word anxiety distinct from other similar nouns?

Some common synonyms of anxiety are care, concern, solicitude, and worry. While all these words mean "a troubled or engrossed state of mind or the thing that causes this," anxiety stresses anguished uncertainty or fear of misfortune or failure.

plagued by anxiety and self-doubt

Where would care be a reasonable alternative to anxiety?

The meanings of care and anxiety largely overlap; however, care implies oppression of the mind weighed down by responsibility or disquieted by apprehension.

a face worn by years of care

When would concern be a good substitute for anxiety?

The words concern and anxiety can be used in similar contexts, but concern implies a troubled state of mind because of personal interest, relation, or affection.

crimes caused concern in the neighborhood

When is it sensible to use solicitude instead of anxiety?

The synonyms solicitude and anxiety are sometimes interchangeable, but solicitude implies great concern and connotes either thoughtful or hovering attentiveness toward another.

acted with typical maternal solicitude

When might worry be a better fit than anxiety?

The words worry and anxiety are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, worry suggests fretting over matters that may or may not be real cause for anxiety.

financial worries

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of anxiety This is also one of the reasons why chronically high cortisol is associated with anxiety, irritability and trouble focusing. Daryl Austin, USA Today, 30 May 2026 Multiple doctors suggested anxiety was the cause of her symptoms, despite frightening physical episodes that continued to become more severe. Tereza Shkurtaj, PEOPLE, 30 May 2026 About 43% of Americans with a net worth between $500,000 and $800,000, and 24% of those with a net worth of $800,000 or higher report financial anxiety, Acorns found. Kamaron McNair, CNBC, 30 May 2026 For now, however, such anxieties are being held at bay, as the rescue has given these men a second chance at life. Kocha Olarn, CNN Money, 30 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for anxiety
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anxiety
Noun
  • All of my rage and fear and wonder.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 1 June 2026
  • The computing power needs, the competition from Anthropic, the potential for a more business-to-business stream of revenue, the fear that all of the big institutions that own it will want to cash out, makes this one plain fraught.
    Jim Cramer, CNBC, 31 May 2026
Noun
  • Brith, filled with a sudden dread, stands very still, watching it, and the dog, sensing something, emits a low growl.
    Maggie O’Farrell, Literary Hub, 2 June 2026
  • Her smile in the fantasy is one of relief and clarity, which cuts so hard after watching the dread pile up before Leslie notices her.
    Ben Travers, IndieWire, 1 June 2026
Noun
  • Analysts have previously expressed concern that US stocks of the interceptors have been depleted by the Iran conflict as well as by last year’s 12-day war between Israel and Iran, and noted that manufacturing more takes time.
    Lauren Kent, CNN Money, 4 June 2026
  • Those concerns that chopped 30% off cyber stocks earlier this year could not have been more wrong, as Jim Cramer had said all along.
    Zev Fima, CNBC, 4 June 2026
Noun
  • The onboard camera, sending video back to the remote pilot in real time, captures his panic.
    David L. Stern, Washington Post, 31 May 2026
  • In the years following, Beijing funded or armed fellow communists in Vietnam, North Korea, Burma, Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia, causing panic in Washington and other Western capitals as the ideological struggles of the Cold War rippled across Asia.
    Dhruv Tikekar, CNN Money, 30 May 2026
Noun
  • Wembanyama finished with 26 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks in the loss but downplayed any worries about the team’s struggles after the game.
    Jacob Lev, CNN Money, 4 June 2026
  • Stocks also came under pressure on Middle East worries.
    Lee Ying Shan,Justina Lee, CNBC, 4 June 2026
Noun
  • The constant movement might make some audience members dizzy, yet its jitteriness signifies the anxiety and unease of the characters, both in their skin and with each other.
    Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 25 May 2026
  • All that party infighting — present before every primary, but at a fever pitch now — comes against a backdrop of broader voter unease about the war in Iran, volatile oil and gas prices, and the burgeoning threat of AI to the American workforce.
    Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 24 May 2026
Noun
  • LaBeouf’s campaign of terror ended when he was arrested for punching several people outside the Royal Street Inn & R Bar.
    Bethy Squires, Vulture, 3 June 2026
  • The sheer terror of marathon training certainly kept me off cigarettes for a solid six months.
    Kimberly McCreight, Time, 3 June 2026
Noun
  • Copyright 2025, all frights reserved.
    Kayla Grant, PEOPLE, 13 May 2026
  • In set-pieces involving the Pooka, dark lighting and strong use of shadow results in some scenes that can give younger viewers a genuine fright.
    Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 1 May 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Anxiety.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anxiety. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.

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