as in worried
feeling or showing uncomfortable feelings of uncertainty
it won't do you any good to get all het up before the tryouts and lose sleep
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Recent Examples of het up
As for the airport tray aesthetic, while people might be getting het up at the idea of Gen Z holding up the line for some navel-gazing, the US Transport Security Administration is sanguine about the risk.
—
Maureen O'Hare, CNN, 8 Sep. 2024
So why has the Chanel version gotten people so het up?
—New York Times, 6 Dec. 2021
Something about unfolding Bennifer events, this rekindling of an old flame, has got all of us het up.
—Raven Smith, Vogue, 16 June 2021
In a normal December, people would be more concerned with the holidays and a busy schedule and wouldn't get this het up with Congress.
—Arkansas Online, 28 Dec. 2020
Cultural appropriation is one of the issues that gets hft most het up.
—Vanessa Friedman, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2020
Looking at the schedule for London, which kicks off tomorrow, there’s a pretty meaningful amount of exciting menswear action to get het up about.
—Luke Leitch, Vogue, 3 Jan. 2019
Open to charges of sacrilege, though interestingly the digital watchdogs of this world seemed too busy picking their collective jaws up off the floor in amazement to get het up about it.
—New York Times, 8 May 2018
Maureen O'Hare, CNN, 8 Sep. 2024
So why has the Chanel version gotten people so het up?
—New York Times, 6 Dec. 2021
Something about unfolding Bennifer events, this rekindling of an old flame, has got all of us het up.
—Raven Smith, Vogue, 16 June 2021
In a normal December, people would be more concerned with the holidays and a busy schedule and wouldn't get this het up with Congress.
—Arkansas Online, 28 Dec. 2020
Cultural appropriation is one of the issues that gets hft most het up.
—Vanessa Friedman, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2020
Looking at the schedule for London, which kicks off tomorrow, there’s a pretty meaningful amount of exciting menswear action to get het up about.
—Luke Leitch, Vogue, 3 Jan. 2019
Open to charges of sacrilege, though interestingly the digital watchdogs of this world seemed too busy picking their collective jaws up off the floor in amazement to get het up about it.
—New York Times, 8 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for het up
Adjective
-
One of the biggest shifts since the time of Rose is that far fewer Americans are worried about this potential problem.—
Harry Enten,
CNN Money,
11 July 2025
-
Critics of Greene's bill are worried that the legislation could disproportionately benefit higher-income individuals, who naturally stand to make more profits from a home sale.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 July 2025
Adjective
-
Cafu, on the other hand, will be entering the ring with plenty of confidence and hunger, knowing that an upset win could change his life and put him at the center of the super flyweight spotlight.—
Kilty Cleary,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 July 2025
-
All of the under-the-table deals are out in the open, generally speaking, and folks are upset.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
18 July 2025
Adjective
-
My expectation is that the veteran who has been in the Octagon against some of the heaviest hitters in the UFC’s heavyweight division is going to be anxious to test the young man who only has 35 seconds of UFC fight time to his name.—
Trent Reinsmith,
Forbes.com,
11 July 2025
-
The choice of name was coincidental but Lee and Kirby were anxious to avoid any connection to radical politics.—
Ekow Eshun
July 11,
Literary Hub,
11 July 2025
Adjective
-
Then there's the real world, which is entirely different, so in reality people have nothing to be nervous about.—
Wesley Stenzel,
EW.com,
12 July 2025
-
The odds of a recession may be falling, but states appear to be betting that corporate leaders are still nervous.—
Scott Cohn,
CNBC,
12 July 2025
Adjective
-
In her mind, the community in her fictional story should be one of privilege, a circumstance in which Ruth, who grew up in a working-class Yiddish family, could initially feel ill at ease.—
Esther Zuckerman,
Los Angeles Times,
25 June 2025
-
The young man may be introverted or otherwise socially ill at ease.—
Harriette Cole,
Mercury News,
29 May 2025
Adjective
-
Pico’s other headsets are not sold in North America and ByteDance and the Trump administration have an uneasy relationship at best.—
Chris Morris,
Fortune,
15 July 2025
-
The carpenters’ stance has created a split in the labor movement that makes lawmakers uneasy and sometimes spills into public view.—
CalMatters,
Mercury News,
13 July 2025
Adjective
-
Son of Liam’s Map was a troubled sixth in the Kentucky Derby and a closing second in the Matt Winn Stakes in his last start.—
Danny Brewer,
Forbes.com,
16 July 2025
-
Cornell took the helm at Target in 2014, another troubled time in the company's history.—
Melissa Repko,
CNBC,
15 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Het up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/het%20up. Accessed 24 Jul. 2025.
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