ANXIETY
Dictionary entry overview: What does anxiety mean?
• ANXIETY (noun)
The noun ANXIETY has 2 senses:
1. a relatively permanent state of anxiety occurring in a variety of mental disorders
2. a vague unpleasant emotion that is experienced in anticipation of some (usually ill-defined) misfortune
Familiarity information: ANXIETY used as a noun is rare.
Dictionary entry details
• ANXIETY (noun)
Meaning:
A relatively permanent state of anxiety occurring in a variety of mental disorders
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Synonyms:
anxiety; anxiousness
Hypernyms ("anxiety" is a kind of...):
mental state; psychological state ((psychology) a mental condition in which the qualities of a state are relatively constant even though the state itself may be dynamic)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "anxiety"):
castration anxiety ((psychoanalysis) anxiety resulting from real or imagined threats to your sexual functions; originally applied only to men but can in principal apply to women)
hypochondria; hypochondriasis (chronic and abnormal anxiety about imaginary symptoms and ailments)
overanxiety (excessive anxiety)
panic; scare (sudden mass fear and anxiety over anticipated events)
Meaning:
A vague unpleasant emotion that is experienced in anticipation of some (usually ill-defined) misfortune
Classified under:
Nouns denoting feelings and emotions
Hypernyms ("anxiety" is a kind of...):
emotion (any strong feeling)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "anxiety"):
discomfiture; discomposure; disconcertion; disconcertment (anxious embarrassment)
Angst (an acute but unspecific feeling of anxiety; usually reserved for philosophical anxiety about the world or about personal freedom)
jitteriness; jumpiness; nervousness; restiveness (the anxious feeling you have when you have the jitters)
misgiving; qualm; scruple (uneasiness about the fitness of an action)
sinking; sinking feeling (a feeling caused by uneasiness or apprehension)
disquietude; edginess; inquietude; uneasiness (feelings of anxiety that make you tense and irritable)
insecurity (the anxiety you experience when you feel vulnerable and insecure)
anxiousness; disquiet (a feeling of mild anxiety about possible developments)
care; concern; fear (an anxious feeling)
trouble; worry (a strong feeling of anxiety)
