as in paranoid
having or showing a very nervous or disordered state of mind
Her neurotic tendencies tend to manifest in her obsessive need for cleanliness. Our dog is a bit neurotic; she tends to panic around strangers.
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Recent Examples of neurotic
Perfectionists Nini and Jane are feeling a bit neurotic, while Darlene Mitchell helpfully steers Juicy to develop a Karen that will lean into her strengths and make Ru laugh.
—
Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 28 Mar. 2026
Streisand, who played the neurotic, political firebrand Katie Morosky opposite Redford's WASPy Hubbell Gardiner in the 1973 romantic drama, performed a song and delivered a speech honoring him during the Oscars' In Memoriam segment.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 16 Mar. 2026
Block squirts out a capturing of Dreyfuss as a fuzzy-haired neurotic ping-ponging mood changes around the set.
—Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 10 Mar. 2026
The issue, which can arise within minutes, is that no matter how careful, how neurotic, how cautious someone is, inevitably the shiny piano black plastic trim gets scratched, knicked, and or marred rapidly as a car is used.
—Joel Feder, The Drive, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for neurotic
Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 28 Mar. 2026
Streisand, who played the neurotic, political firebrand Katie Morosky opposite Redford's WASPy Hubbell Gardiner in the 1973 romantic drama, performed a song and delivered a speech honoring him during the Oscars' In Memoriam segment.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 16 Mar. 2026
Block squirts out a capturing of Dreyfuss as a fuzzy-haired neurotic ping-ponging mood changes around the set.
—Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 10 Mar. 2026
The issue, which can arise within minutes, is that no matter how careful, how neurotic, how cautious someone is, inevitably the shiny piano black plastic trim gets scratched, knicked, and or marred rapidly as a car is used.
—Joel Feder, The Drive, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for neurotic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for neurotic
paranoid
Adjective
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Beginning in 2010, emergency rooms began seeing agitated patients who were violent, paranoid and psychotic after ingesting synthetic cathinones sold as bath salts.—
Jonathan Corum,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2026
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Hitchcock offers a solid condemnation of paranoid English nationalism on the brink of war, all under the guise of a compelling whodunit in one of the director's trademark locations, keeping all suspects in close quarters (and the true killer even closer).—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Neurotic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/neurotic. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
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