Synonym Chooser

How is the word solicitude distinct from other similar nouns?

Some common synonyms of solicitude are anxiety, care, concern, and worry. While all these words mean "a troubled or engrossed state of mind or the thing that causes this," solicitude implies great concern and connotes either thoughtful or hovering attentiveness toward another.

acted with typical maternal solicitude

When could anxiety be used to replace solicitude?

Although the words anxiety and solicitude have much in common, anxiety stresses anguished uncertainty or fear of misfortune or failure.

plagued by anxiety and self-doubt

In what contexts can care take the place of solicitude?

The words care and solicitude can be used in similar contexts, but care implies oppression of the mind weighed down by responsibility or disquieted by apprehension.

a face worn by years of care

When can concern be used instead of solicitude?

The words concern and solicitude are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, concern implies a troubled state of mind because of personal interest, relation, or affection.

crimes caused concern in the neighborhood

When is it sensible to use worry instead of solicitude?

The meanings of worry and solicitude largely overlap; however, worry suggests fretting over matters that may or may not be real cause for anxiety.

financial worries

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 solicitude Even the Scotland Residents page on Facebook, usually seething with vitriol directed toward neighbors and local officials alike, was full of solicitude and suggestions and offers of help. Gary Greenberg, Harper's Magazine, 23 Oct. 2024 Nature has made this a necessity: Without constant care and solicitude, an infant will die. Roxana Robinson, TIME, 18 July 2024 This idea will add the inducements of philanthropy to those of patriotism, to heighten the solicitude which all considerate and good men must feel for the event. Liz Tracey, JSTOR Daily, 30 May 2024 That’s surely what accounts for the solicitude that the cryptocurrency industry has been receiving from Congress. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 24 May 2024 See All Example Sentences for solicitude
Recent Examples of Synonyms for solicitude
Noun
  • Senate Republicans also added a $25 billion fund to help rural hospitals after some GOP senators expressed concern about how they could be affected by the change to provider taxes.
    July 1, CBS News, 1 July 2025
  • Reports on Monday showed that Russia had amassed some 50,000 troops on Ukraine's northern border near the Sumy region, sparking concerns that Putin could be planning another major offensive.
    Caitlin McFall, FOXNews.com, 1 July 2025
Noun
  • And any fear—and hence bigger discounts—caused by overwrought debt worries just makes our opportunity even sweeter.
    Michael Foster, Forbes.com, 28 June 2025
  • After a den of thieves ransacked a rural Northern California home so many times that the owner fled in fear, the property fell into even wilder hands: a group of bears, authorities said.
    Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2025
Noun
  • Indeed, the designer’s intentions are based on high ideals — kindness, tolerance and humility among them — even if his methods can sometime shock.
    Miles Socha, Footwear News, 25 June 2025
  • Her courage, kindness, and determination touched the lives of everyone who knew her.
    Christina Coulter, People.com, 24 June 2025
Noun
  • Your husband’s anxiety just makes her puppet strings easier to pull.
    Virginia Chamlee, People.com, 5 July 2025
  • But Democratic pollster John Zogby said many of the wins came at the sacrifice of some and that anxiety in America is higher than ever.
    Paul Bedard, The Washington Examiner, 5 July 2025
Noun
  • However, the law still will prevent some immigrants from accessing services such as soup kitchens, prenatal care and crisis counseling.
    Carolyn Komatsoulis, Idaho Statesman, 1 July 2025
  • With more than 750 products across makeup, skin and hair care and coloring, L’Oréal Paris ranks as the biggest beauty brand in the world.
    Noor Lobad, Footwear News, 1 July 2025
Noun
  • The fact Ishiba’s LDP faces an election on July 20 only heightens the BOJ’s worries about the political establishment striking back.
    William Pesek, Forbes.com, 26 June 2025
  • But plenty of Republicans have expressed worries about the provision as well, imperiling its passage.
    Andrew R. Chow, Time, 25 June 2025
Noun
  • However, there is unease in the market about supply exceeding demand from 2027 onward, and a potential glut that could persist to the end of the decade dragging prices lower.
    Gaurav Sharma, Forbes.com, 3 July 2025
  • There is a certain unease that settles over a place when a familiar landmark begins to dissolve.
    Ana Gutierrez, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Solicitude.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/solicitude. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.

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