as in worry
disapproving
worried talk or behavior
There has been a lot of silly hand-wringing over the latest hike in interest rates.
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Recent Examples of hand-wringing
The current round of liberal hand-wringing about how conservatives have become far better at driving the political conversation stems in large part from Kirk.
—
David Weigel, semafor.com, 10 Sep. 2025
As the calendar turns to fall, there’s been a lot of hand-wringing over the 2025 summer box office, which the New York Times reported was at its lowest point since 1981.
—Brian Welk, IndieWire, 8 Sep. 2025
No more hand-wringing and excuses by politicians who love to talk while people are terrorized.
—Willie Wilson, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2025
Somewhat lost in the hand-wringing over the CEO announcement, Target actually topped Wall Street expectations for sales and earnings during its fiscal second quarter.
—Mark Faithfull, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025
The tariff ramp-up has prompted hand-wringing and contingency planning, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an audience with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 8 Aug. 2025
There were more defections, more hand-wringing calculations.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 10 July 2025
But the weekend gathering wasn’t all hand-wringing and liquid refreshment.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 4 June 2025
Huang’s unapologetic stance on AI is bracing in its way, especially in contrast with the public hand-wringing of many AI chieftains, fretting about the dangers of their LLMs while continuing to develop them.
—James Surowiecki, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2025
David Weigel, semafor.com, 10 Sep. 2025
As the calendar turns to fall, there’s been a lot of hand-wringing over the 2025 summer box office, which the New York Times reported was at its lowest point since 1981.
—Brian Welk, IndieWire, 8 Sep. 2025
No more hand-wringing and excuses by politicians who love to talk while people are terrorized.
—Willie Wilson, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2025
Somewhat lost in the hand-wringing over the CEO announcement, Target actually topped Wall Street expectations for sales and earnings during its fiscal second quarter.
—Mark Faithfull, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025
The tariff ramp-up has prompted hand-wringing and contingency planning, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an audience with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 8 Aug. 2025
There were more defections, more hand-wringing calculations.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 10 July 2025
But the weekend gathering wasn’t all hand-wringing and liquid refreshment.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 4 June 2025
Huang’s unapologetic stance on AI is bracing in its way, especially in contrast with the public hand-wringing of many AI chieftains, fretting about the dangers of their LLMs while continuing to develop them.
—James Surowiecki, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hand-wringing
Noun
-
The worry is that these aren’t simple, one-off glitches, but systemic flaws with the way that generative tools are designed and built, and a lack of accountability for the behavior of AI algorithms.—
Bernard Marr,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
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Taxes at that level were essentially a blockade on commerce between the world's two largest economies, causing worries about global growth that led to negotiations that ratcheted down the tariffs being levied by both nations.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The vote to approve Miran’s nomination passed 48-47, along party lines, with Democrats expressing concern about the appointment impacting the central bank’s independence.—
Siladitya Ray,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Motiva is helping to eliminate this concern.—
Megan McIntyre,
Allure,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Add in the possibility of more extensive – and costly – work such as bridges, crowns, extractions or implants, and the anxiety can grow even stronger.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
13 Sep. 2025
-
The enthusiasm around personal curriculums and independent learning might reflect modern-day anxieties.—
Harmeet Kaur,
CNN Money,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Widespread panic and pain People who were not directly exposed to the disaster but who were exposed to the news also experience distress, anxiety or symptoms of PTSD.—
Arash Javanbakht,
The Conversation,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Naturally the thought of death came into one’s mind occasionally but one tried to be sensible about it, not getting into a panic, not pushing it away.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Rather than let his boy be torn apart by terrible creatures in the mist, David uses a gun to mercy-kill them all and screams in anguish because there isn't a bullet left for him.—
James Grebey,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
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While Cherry is more versed at keeping her rage simmering just below the surface, Laura struggles to hide her anguish and disgust, which alarms those closest to her.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Mothers told Fletcher of sending their children to live elsewhere for fear they will be raped in the displacement camps, a constant worry.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
15 Sep. 2025
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The stock is still benefiting from having been dismissed and cheapened by prior fears of its search franchise being disrupted.—
Michael Santoli,
CNBC,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Leaders have since reached an agreement to de-escalate tensions, temporarily lowering the duties to 30% on the United States’ side and 10% on China’s part.—
Nino Paoli,
Fortune,
15 Sep. 2025
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Both nations' military deployments indicate that the region could remain a potential flashpoint, with further operations or incidents possibly escalating tensions.—
Amir Daftari,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But before long his hearing begins to disappear, leading him down a panicked trail of denial, anger and desperation.—
Travis Bean,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
-
The Irish have scored four total touchdowns in the past two games against Elko, which included that desperation run by Audric Estime at Duke two years ago.—
Pete Sampson,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hand-wringing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hand-wringing. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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