variants
or nerve-wracking
as in nervous
marked by or causing agitation or uncomfortable feelings
the nerve-racking wait to learn the identities of the passengers who were killed in the plane crash
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Recent Examples of nerve-racking
Fridays have become some of the most nerve-racking times for mass firings of civil servants since President Donald Trump took office on January 20 and established DOGE.
—
Nathan Layne, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2025
Even when he’s engulfed by neo-Nazi demonstrations, Talwar wants nothing more than to belong — a nerve-racking ethical tug-of-war that introduces a sense of danger.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 24 Feb. 2025
Multiple new blazes have erupted in Southern California The Hughes, Sepulveda and Laguna fires are the latest blazes in a nerve-racking week as Southern California heads into a fourth consecutive day of red flag fire weather warnings.
—Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Getting used to the bare-bones shoot took time, but the nerve-racking encounters started on day one.
—Alamin Yohannes, EW.com, 15 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nerve-racking
Nathan Layne, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2025
Even when he’s engulfed by neo-Nazi demonstrations, Talwar wants nothing more than to belong — a nerve-racking ethical tug-of-war that introduces a sense of danger.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 24 Feb. 2025
Multiple new blazes have erupted in Southern California The Hughes, Sepulveda and Laguna fires are the latest blazes in a nerve-racking week as Southern California heads into a fourth consecutive day of red flag fire weather warnings.
—Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Getting used to the bare-bones shoot took time, but the nerve-racking encounters started on day one.
—Alamin Yohannes, EW.com, 15 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nerve-racking
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nerve-racking
Adjective
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The price of gold tends to move when markets get nervous – and so does the gold.—
Ken Roberts,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
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That said, one moment in the final episode did make Brashear nervous.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Streaming on Paramount+ Paramount+ Mission: Impossible — Fallout Maybe it’s called Fallout because this one’s lousy with plutonium cores, recaptured nuclear bombs, tense disarming sequences, and explosions.—
Eric Vilas-Boas,
Vulture,
23 May 2025
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Denzel Washington confronts photographer in tense moment at Cannes Film Festival Watson did not scrimp in the glamour department for her 2013 Cannes debut either.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
23 May 2025
Adjective
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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
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An inaccurate diagnosis might lead to unnecessary or risky treatment, and a false positive can cause stress by requiring additional tests and anxious waits for results.—
Max Votek,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Today, hydrogen bombs have replaced atom bombs in most arsenals, creating a world of uneasy standoffs among nuclear foes.—
William J. Broad,
New York Times,
19 May 2025
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With the rage virus still raging, a group of survivors, including a husband and wife played by Jodie Comer and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, lives in uneasy isolation on a fortified island — until one of them crosses the causeway into whatever’s left of the mainland.—
Greg Braxton,
Los Angeles Times,
16 May 2025
Adjective
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Nothing has officially happened yet, but the tension is disturbing with the consequences potentially devastating.—
Mac Engel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
27 May 2025
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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
Cite this Entry
“Nerve-racking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nerve-racking. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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