WORRY Synonyms: 179 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the verb 'worry' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of worry are annoy , harass , harry , pester , plague , and tease . While all these words mean "to disturb or irritate by persistent acts," worry implies an incessant goading or attacking that drives one to desperation. // pursued a policy of worrying the enemy

Q: When can 'annoy' be used instead of 'worry'?

The words annoy and worry are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, annoy implies disturbing one's composure or peace of mind by intrusion, interference, or petty attacks. // you're doing that just to annoy me

Q: When is 'harass' a more appropriate choice than 'worry'?

The meanings of harass and worry largely overlap; however, harass implies petty persecutions or burdensome demands that exhaust one's nervous or mental power. // harassed on all sides by creditors

Q: When would 'harry' be a good substitute for 'worry'?

While the synonyms harry and worry are close in meaning, harry may imply heavy oppression or maltreatment. // the strikers had been harried by thugs

Q: When could 'pester' be used to replace 'worry'?

The words pester and worry can be used in similar contexts, but pester stresses the repetition of petty attacks. // constantly pestered with trivial complaints

Q: In what contexts can 'plague' take the place of 'worry'?

Although the words plague and worry have much in common, plague implies a painful and persistent affliction. // plagued all her life by poverty

Q: When is it sensible to use 'tease' instead of 'worry'?

In some situations, the words tease and worry are roughly equivalent. However, tease suggests an attempt to break down one's resistance or rouse to wrath. // children teased the dog

worry 1 of 2

verb

ˈwər-ē

Definition of worry

as in to fret

to experience concern or anxiety they worried for days about whether the loan would be approved

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to bother

to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy those strange noises outside the house worry me

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

worry

2 of 2

noun

as in fear

an uneasy state of mind usually over the possibility of an anticipated misfortune or trouble she can only concentrate on something when she is free of worry

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb worry contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of worry are annoy, harass, harry, pester, plague, and tease. While all these words mean "to disturb or irritate by persistent acts," worry implies an incessant goading or attacking that drives one to desperation.

pursued a policy of worrying the enemy

When can annoy be used instead of worry?

The words annoy and worry are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, annoy implies disturbing one's composure or peace of mind by intrusion, interference, or petty attacks.

you're doing that just to annoy me

When is harass a more appropriate choice than worry?

The meanings of harass and worry largely overlap; however, harass implies petty persecutions or burdensome demands that exhaust one's nervous or mental power.

harassed on all sides by creditors

When would harry be a good substitute for worry?

While the synonyms harry and worry are close in meaning, harry may imply heavy oppression or maltreatment.

the strikers had been harried by thugs

When could pester be used to replace worry?

The words pester and worry can be used in similar contexts, but pester stresses the repetition of petty attacks.

constantly pestered with trivial complaints

In what contexts can plague take the place of worry?

Although the words plague and worry have much in common, plague implies a painful and persistent affliction.

plagued all her life by poverty

When is it sensible to use tease instead of worry?

In some situations, the words tease and worry are roughly equivalent. However, tease suggests an attempt to break down one's resistance or rouse to wrath.

children teased the dog

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 worry

Verb

Some on Wall Street worry that a Democratic sweep of Congress this time around could lead to more regulations and restrictions on AI development. — Stan Choe, Chicago Tribune, 3 Nov. 2026 As the mother of a nine-year-old son, Lee worries about the dearth of positive male examples in online spaces. — Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 3 Nov. 2026

Noun

Who knew that McKellen’s Hollywood worries would end up with him following the same path as his friend, leading to both actors starring in the first generation of Marvel movies. — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2026 At Alphabet, cloud revenue beat expectations, but search ad revenue came in below forecasts, fueling investor worries that AI overlays are cannibalizing the company’s core business. — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 29 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for worry

Recent Examples of Synonyms for worry

Verb

Investors have fretted about the possibility that Fox’s deal for Roku could get tied up as a result of Ruddy’s efforts.

— Rohan Goswami, semafor.com, 3 Nov. 2026
And just a few years ago folks were fretting over the demise of democracy and the future of the republic.

— Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 2 Nov. 2026

Definition of fret

Verb

In fact, the movie doesn’t even bother revealing Fang’s ultimate fate; but then again, he’s been fully vindicated in the court of public opinion, so who cares?

— Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 2 Nov. 2026
Nothing shows the world that the outside noise doesn’t bother you quite like preparing a statement ahead of time about how much the outside noise doesn’t bother you.

— Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2026

Definition of bother

Noun

Fortune recently reported on wealthy parents’ growing fear that their fortunes will sap their children’s drive.

— Molly A. Wallace, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026
Coupled with job-displacement fears from AI, opponents now point to the facilities as a physical symbol of who benefits from the boom and who gets stuck with the bill.

— Luke Fountain, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of fear

Verb

Anthropic stressed that researchers deliberately fine-tuned these models for testing.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 31 Oct. 2026
Organizers focused on election protection efforts stress that the goal is to ensure every voter casts their vote and the person who gets the most votes is declared the winner — all regardless of political party.

— Justine McDaniel, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of stress

Verb

Musk and SpaceX have been instructed to preserve records concerning restrictions imposed on a military version of the Starlink satellite internet service in Ukraine, CNN first reported, citing an aide to a Democratic senator.

— Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2026
A number of women who were not known to each other came forward to officers with reports concerning Brand after that investigation was published, the Met Police said.

— Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN Money, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of concern

Noun

Research has also found that across generational groups, greater user tendency to engage in social comparison, together with greater maladaptive ways of coping with emotions, is associated with more symptoms of anger, anxiety, and depression.

— Ashwini Nadkarni, Time, 24 Oct. 2026
The market for profiting off male body anxiety is nothing new.

— Gavin Francis, The New York Review of Books, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of anxiety

Verb

Perhaps only a pedant—or a hypocrite—would fuss about that kind of imprecision.

— Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2026
If the offensive line’s healthy again, RB Saquon Barkley will ramble again, broadening QB Jalen Hurts’ margin for error and being fussed at by the coaching staff.

— David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of fuss

Browse Nearby Words

worrisome

worry

worrying

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Style

“Worry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/worry. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of worry

verb

noun

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