as in tense
marked by or causing agitation or uncomfortable feelings
for a couple of nail-biting moments we thought that we had actually won the mega lottery
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Recent Examples of nail-biting
Then on Sunday, after freshman Alexis Jensen’s dominant showing in the circle, Frahm closed out the Huskers’ nail-biting 1-0 win.
—
Molly Keshin, New York Times, 19 May 2026
The nail-biting incident took place about 80 miles east off the coast of Melbourne, Florida – which is about 175 miles north of Miami.
—Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 13 May 2026
Throughout the upcoming reality series, viewers will watch Shelton and his team tackle similar nail-biting situations each episode to return homes to their rightful owners.
—Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 12 May 2026
The good ingredients of a nail-biting drama are, indeed, instantly laid out in the first episode.
—Annika Pham, Variety, 24 Apr. 2026
The secret nearly allows Echo to win, but the next day in a nail-biting finish, Liquid defeated the last boss after 474 attempts, securing its place as the best guild in the world.
—Sandra McDonald, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2026
Minutes before, a six-minute communications blackout with mission controllers made for a nail-biting finish to the mission as the capsule plunged through Earth’s atmosphere.
—Denise Chow, NBC news, 11 Apr. 2026
Mizzou earned a nail-biting 89-84 victory over Southeast Missouri in its home opener.
—Joseph Pastilha, Kansas City Star, 5 Apr. 2026
Fellow contenders include Josh Safdie's nail-biting collab with Timothée Chalamet, Marty Supreme, and Joachim Trier's poignant family tale, Sentimental Value, which each earned nine nods, while Chloé Zhao's heartbreaking Hamnet followed with eight.
—Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Mar. 2026
Molly Keshin, New York Times, 19 May 2026
The nail-biting incident took place about 80 miles east off the coast of Melbourne, Florida – which is about 175 miles north of Miami.
—Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 13 May 2026
Throughout the upcoming reality series, viewers will watch Shelton and his team tackle similar nail-biting situations each episode to return homes to their rightful owners.
—Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 12 May 2026
The good ingredients of a nail-biting drama are, indeed, instantly laid out in the first episode.
—Annika Pham, Variety, 24 Apr. 2026
The secret nearly allows Echo to win, but the next day in a nail-biting finish, Liquid defeated the last boss after 474 attempts, securing its place as the best guild in the world.
—Sandra McDonald, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2026
Minutes before, a six-minute communications blackout with mission controllers made for a nail-biting finish to the mission as the capsule plunged through Earth’s atmosphere.
—Denise Chow, NBC news, 11 Apr. 2026
Mizzou earned a nail-biting 89-84 victory over Southeast Missouri in its home opener.
—Joseph Pastilha, Kansas City Star, 5 Apr. 2026
Fellow contenders include Josh Safdie's nail-biting collab with Timothée Chalamet, Marty Supreme, and Joachim Trier's poignant family tale, Sentimental Value, which each earned nine nods, while Chloé Zhao's heartbreaking Hamnet followed with eight.
—Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nail-biting
Adjective
-
Antonelli leads by 43 points from Russell after a tense wheel-to-wheel battle between them at the last race in Canada ended abruptly with an engine failure for Russell.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 June 2026
-
Scott Pelley was then fired this week after a tense confrontation with CBS News bosses.—
Jocelyn Noveck,
Fortune,
6 June 2026
Adjective
-
Until these vexing unknowns are figured out, AI for mental health will be in an uneasy position and subject to strident criticisms and concerns.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
-
Other Western media outlets, meanwhile, are growing more uneasy about what possible interviews with Lai could mean for their presence in China, The Associated Press reported.—
J.D. Capelouto,
semafor.com,
31 May 2026
Adjective
-
OpenAI had previously flagged her ChatGPT conversations as having a disturbing fascination with extreme violence, and suspended her account, but reportedly the company did not notify law enforcement.—
Anat Lior,
Fortune,
30 May 2026
-
In an hour-and-a-half interview with the New York Times Popcast that dropped on Thursday, Rodrigo staunchly defended the dress and called the criticism disturbing.—
Emily St. Martin,
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2026
Adjective
-
This unsettling event haunted Stephen for decades, driving him to collaborate with filmmakers Cynthia Hill and Christine Delp in a search for answers.—
James Mercadante,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 June 2026
-
When an unsettling piece of evidence is revealed, Tara and her crew investigate the disturbing circumstances surrounding the case and attempt to uncover the truth about her brother’s disappearance.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
4 June 2026
Adjective
-
Unlike the coolly impassive Pop artists, the Who weren’t afraid to get personal, or to let their art echo the anxious, kinky, maladjusted yammering in their own heads.—
Jeremy Lybarger,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
-
In Rio, the runner was an anxious up-and-comer, the youngest American track-and-field Olympian since 1972.—
Katie Abel,
Footwear News,
1 June 2026
Adjective
-
Spinella shucks off sentimentality, always showing us Con’s offhand humor and sometimes nervous, defensive rambling.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
3 June 2026
-
Companies start to get nervous when the percentage of shareholders blessing their pay plans dips well below the average, which is slightly above 90%, said Elizabeth Bieber, partner at the law firm Freshfields who leads shareholder engagement.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
2 June 2026
Adjective
-
All the junior right-hander had to do was retire Arvada West’s Levi Lueck with the tying runs in scoring position and nobody in the restless crowd sitting at All-Star Park.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
31 May 2026
-
Based in New Orleans and Paris, Eloueini Architecture is celebrated for designing houses that fold, twist, stagger and float with a restless energy that belies the simplicity of their forms.—
Fred Albert,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
Adjective
-
This therapy targets the traumatic memory directly, so it can be stored differently in the brain to reduce or even eliminate distressing symptoms linked to the trauma, according to the American Psychological Association.—
Sarah Dewberry,
CNN Money,
27 May 2026
-
Aniston gave the classic style a relaxed update while appearing in an Instagram clip with Courteney Cox, opting for loose cut-off jean shorts with subtle distressing that felt casual and easy to move around in.—
Nicol Natale,
PEOPLE,
26 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Nail-biting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nail-biting. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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