variants
or nerve-wracking
as in uneasy
marked by or causing agitation or uncomfortable feelings
the nerve-racking wait to learn the identities of the passengers who were killed in the plane crash
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 nerve-racking
In Parker's nerve-racking scene, her character gives gifts to each member of the Stone clan in an effort to mend fences with them, and Keaton's signature wit is on full display.
—
Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Dec. 2025
Serious belly laughs and nerve-racking moments arrive in equal measure; tonally, there’s nothing quite like it.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 9 Dec. 2025
Meanwhile, Greengrass heaps calamity upon calamity, mounting the fire with nerve-racking expertise.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Dec. 2025
Robinson and Kanin actually have come up with an extremely quirky, often nerve-racking and occasionally gross depiction of 2025 as a time when clear communication is being replaced by misdirection, misinterpretation, AI customer service chats and a pervasive sense of loneliness.
—Julie Hinds, Freep.com, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nerve-racking
Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Dec. 2025
Serious belly laughs and nerve-racking moments arrive in equal measure; tonally, there’s nothing quite like it.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 9 Dec. 2025
Meanwhile, Greengrass heaps calamity upon calamity, mounting the fire with nerve-racking expertise.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Dec. 2025
Robinson and Kanin actually have come up with an extremely quirky, often nerve-racking and occasionally gross depiction of 2025 as a time when clear communication is being replaced by misdirection, misinterpretation, AI customer service chats and a pervasive sense of loneliness.
—Julie Hinds, Freep.com, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nerve-racking
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nerve-racking
Adjective
-
Chalk the moves up to uneasy investors.—
Brandon Kochkodin,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Kelly and King shake things up around the half-hour mark by venturing into the real world, where Grace (Cristin Milioti), the mother of two boys unusually far apart in age, starts being overcome by uneasy feelings about a cold dark void.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
According to The Marshall Project, federal officers fired on at least nine people in their vehicles over a four-month period, evidence of a disturbing pattern.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Zhang was quickly identified as a suspect based on her allegedly increasingly disturbing behavior, according to authorities.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The latest shooting adds to a tense standoff between Minnesota authorities and federal immigration agents that has persisted for weeks.—
Yun Li,
CNBC,
24 Jan. 2026
-
Locals know that even a routine-looking forecast can turn this stretch into a slow, tense drive once storms hit the Sierra.—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
While the money is flowing, state officials are still nervous.—
Miquéla V Thornton,
Bloomberg,
27 Jan. 2026
-
The atmosphere at the Emirates was nervous, too, and their next two opponents — Leeds (away) and Sunderland (home) — will give no quarter.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Flat, calm but earnest, mildly anxious, blunted, volatile.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Times of Troy survey After an anxious few weeks for Trojan fans, USC finally has its next defensive coordinator.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
On the unsettling meme economy in the aftermath of violence.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Uncertainty can be unsettling nonetheless.—
Kirk Kenney,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
And yet behind the distressful scene, a young man continues to butcher an animal.—
Kaely Monahan,
The Arizona Republic,
27 Mar. 2024
-
Despite the distressful news of Houston’s death that day, the event went forward to create a space for guests to mourn.—
Elizabeth Wagmeister,
CNN,
2 Feb. 2024
Adjective
-
The size of the debt is difficult to comprehend and also unnerving, even to many who are used to very large numbers.—
Erik Sherman,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
What’s most visually unnerving is the painful, prolonged transformation people undergo after receiving their shot or catching the virus.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Nerve-racking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nerve-racking. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
