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Synonym Chooser

How is the word anxious distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of anxious are athirst, avid, eager, and keen. While all these words mean "moved by a strong and urgent desire or interest," anxious emphasizes fear of frustration or failure or disappointment.

anxious not to make a social blunder

When would athirst be a good substitute for anxious?

Although the words athirst and anxious have much in common, athirst stresses yearning but not necessarily readiness for action.

athirst for adventure

How do avid and eager relate to one another, in the sense of anxious?

Avid adds to eager the implication of insatiability or greed.

avid for new thrills

When is eager a more appropriate choice than anxious?

The synonyms eager and anxious are sometimes interchangeable, but eager implies ardor and enthusiasm and sometimes impatience at delay or restraint.

eager to get started

Where would keen be a reasonable alternative to anxious?

While the synonyms keen and anxious are close in meaning, keen suggests intensity of interest and quick responsiveness in action.

keen on the latest fashions

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 anxious Now that the current school year — her third with this particular family — is drawing to a close, the OP is anxious about her financial situation. Erin Clack, People.com, 31 May 2025 The business owners who depend on migrant work — many of them supporters of President Trump — feel anxious about the prospect of losing a crucial labor force. Ana Ley, New York Times, 30 May 2025 As state and federal Medicaid cuts loom, Hoosiers are anxious about the impact Jordan Musenbrock, 35, said Medicaid helped pay for her manual wheelchair and its repairs, shower chair, catheters and several medications. Chicago Tribune, 27 May 2025 In the novel’s historical re-creation, is there an anxious note to Americans now losing themselves in accommodation? David Denby, New Yorker, 23 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for anxious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anxious
Adjective
  • Georgia, too, is worried about Ginny's behind-the-scenes machinations.
    Randall Colburn, EW.com, 7 June 2025
  • The freemium search engine Kagi isn't worried about having the most comprehensive index.
    Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 6 June 2025
Adjective
  • In the wake of multiple plane crashes, and amid erratic federal policies and denials and detentions at border crossings, summer travel in the U.S. is in an uneasy state.
    Kevinisha Walker, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2025
  • To the south, there’s the United Arab Emirates, where again, there has been an uneasy relationship at times.
    Oliver Kay, New York Times, 30 May 2025
Adjective
  • But for his versatility, the variety in his attacking link-up and movement, and his ever-presence in a tough City season, there is reason to be excited for what lies ahead.
    Thom Harris, New York Times, 28 May 2025
  • Artist Tina Birkhoff said this was her first year displaying her work at the event and was very excited to be at the show over the weekend.
    David Sharos, Chicago Tribune, 27 May 2025
Adjective
  • The video highlighted how visibly nervous Jessie was while using jokes to get through the show.
    Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 6 June 2025
  • In a video played on Thursday's episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Hamill is shown giving his opening monologue declaring his love for film when a nervous expression crosses his face.
    Mekishana Pierre Updated, EW.com, 5 June 2025
Adjective
  • Nothing has officially happened yet, but the tension is disturbing with the consequences potentially devastating.
    Mac Engel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 May 2025
  • That’s a quite disturbing possibility since AGI could wield such an act on a scale of immense magnitude and with globally adverse consequences.
    Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 24 May 2025
Adjective
  • Against this backdrop of uncertainty, Dawkins is eager to get back on the court.
    Matt Murschel, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 May 2025
  • And fans also will be eager to watch the team play again.
    Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 28 May 2025
Adjective
  • When the Eaton and Palisades fires sparked in January — respectively the second- and third-most destructive in California history — familiarity, friend groups and routines were upset for Emory and many of her peers.
    Emma Bowman, NPR, 2 June 2025
  • Local fans were also upset at how ticketing was organised, with empty seats in temporary stands at their Montilivi ground for most games.
    The Athletic UK Staff, New York Times, 2 June 2025
Adjective
  • But recently, her videos detailing her tense, hours-long encounter with Customs at MIA went viral.
    Amanda Rosa, Miami Herald, 4 June 2025
  • The lunch came at a tense time for the family as Patterson's relationship with her estranged husband had been deteriorating.
    Chloe Mayer, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Anxious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anxious. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.

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