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 community hand-wringing picked up when the Bills began charging $8,000-$50,000 annually per patron on PSLs for club seats.
—
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 Apr. 2026
Those who haven’t purchased trip insurance, can’t avoid the flight or have to travel out of necessity are going to be doing a lot of hand-wringing before the airport.
—Beth Collums, AJC.com, 3 Apr. 2026
There’s been a fair bit of hand-wringing in college basketball circles about the lack of Cinderella stories in this year’s NCAA men’s tournament.
—Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 24 Mar. 2026
There’s hand-wringing every year about the Oscars failing to attract younger viewers, but when a category that actually holds some interest to broader Gen Z viewers gets called, it’s treated as an afterthought?
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 20 Mar. 2026
While many workers are hand-wringing over the fate of their careers, there are several CEOs who believe humans will be turbocharged rather than crushed by AI.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 19 Mar. 2026
Depending on the viewer, the video elicited either admiration, outrage or existential hand-wringing.
—Holly Willis, The Conversation, 13 Mar. 2026
There’s obviously a lot of hand-wringing around climbing losing its soul.
—Outside, 23 Feb. 2026
The economic potential is real, but the hand-wringing is overblown.
—Editorial Board, Washington Post, 17 Feb. 2026
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 Apr. 2026
Those who haven’t purchased trip insurance, can’t avoid the flight or have to travel out of necessity are going to be doing a lot of hand-wringing before the airport.
—Beth Collums, AJC.com, 3 Apr. 2026
There’s been a fair bit of hand-wringing in college basketball circles about the lack of Cinderella stories in this year’s NCAA men’s tournament.
—Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 24 Mar. 2026
There’s hand-wringing every year about the Oscars failing to attract younger viewers, but when a category that actually holds some interest to broader Gen Z viewers gets called, it’s treated as an afterthought?
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 20 Mar. 2026
While many workers are hand-wringing over the fate of their careers, there are several CEOs who believe humans will be turbocharged rather than crushed by AI.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 19 Mar. 2026
Depending on the viewer, the video elicited either admiration, outrage or existential hand-wringing.
—Holly Willis, The Conversation, 13 Mar. 2026
There’s obviously a lot of hand-wringing around climbing losing its soul.
—Outside, 23 Feb. 2026
The economic potential is real, but the hand-wringing is overblown.
—Editorial Board, Washington Post, 17 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hand-wringing
Noun
-
At a recent seven-hour legislative meeting, Nevadans complained to lawmakers about the noise data centers produce, and their worries about how the centers will affect water supply and energy bills.—
Jessica Hill,
Fortune,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Memories of the pandemic and worries about crime were still fresh, and the 120,000-square-foot building was vacant.—
Brian J. Rogal,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Even before the Iran war sent gas prices soaring, many Americans were still recovering from the pandemic-era inflation spike and continued to cite affordability as a major concern.—
Aimee Picchi,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Another Antarctic species -- the Southern elephant seal -- is also now at risk of extinction due to bird flu, moving from least concern to vulnerable, according to researchers.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Amid record anxiety about the future of work—and growing warnings about the potential erosion of white-collar careers—one unlikely field may be getting the last laugh.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
5 Apr. 2026
-
Drone use is heavily limited by battery anxiety, but without a battery the use cases really open up.—
Omar Kardoudi
April 05,
New Atlas,
5 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Cash in circulation surged 49% YoY due to panic hoarding.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
5 Apr. 2026
-
In South Korea, where people have been panic-buying trash bags, the government has encouraged event organizers to minimize use of disposable items.—
Stephanie Yang,
CNN Money,
4 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Large statues of the Virgin Mary show her in various states of mourning, even in anguish.—
Alexis Marshall,
NPR,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Without a diagnosis, people are unsure about how a condition might progress over time, and this can be a great source of anguish for both patients and their families.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Her work plainly belongs to this lineage of witchy writers, women whose deliciously corrupted scenes of home and hearth produce fear and wild laughter at once.—
Kristen Roupenian,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
This new strategy recognized that neighborhood fear is not just driven by crimes; it is also driven by neighborhood disorder.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The lawsuit comes amid growing tension at the state Capitol between the Opportunity Caucus, made up of centrist Democrats, and the Progressive Caucus.—
Shaun Boyd,
CBS News,
11 Apr. 2026
-
This is owing to the high pitch of the notes, the tension of the strings, and the small body of the instrument.—
Tim Parks,
New Yorker,
11 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The freshmen went back in forth, but Illinois missed its last three desperation attempts and UConn made five of its six free throws down the stretch.—
Joe Arruda,
Hartford Courant,
5 Apr. 2026
-
Deftly drawing from folk, soul, blues, funk and country, Armatrading sings of love lost, won and desired, heady aspirations and quiet desperation, in a deep, richly moving voice.—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hand-wringing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hand-wringing. Accessed 12 Apr. 2026.
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