WORRY

concern, worry, headache, vexation

(noun) something or someone that causes anxiety; a source of unhappiness; “New York traffic is a constant concern”; “it’s a major worry”

worry, trouble

(noun) a strong feeling of anxiety; “his worry over the prospect of being fired”; “it is not work but worry that kills”; “he wanted to die and end his troubles”

worry

(verb) touch or rub constantly; “The old man worried his beads”

worry

(verb) lacerate by biting; “the dog worried his bone”

worry, vex

(verb) disturb the peace of mind of; afflict with mental agitation or distress; “I cannot sleep--my daughter’s health is worrying me”

worry

(verb) be worried, concerned, anxious, troubled, or uneasy; “I worry about my job”

concern, interest, occupy, worry

(verb) be on the mind of; “I worry about the second Germanic consonant shift”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Verb

worry (third-person singular simple present worries, present participle worrying, simple past and past participle worried)

(intransitive) To be troubled; to give way to mental anxiety or doubt.

(transitive) Disturb the peace of mind of; afflict with mental agitation or distress.

(transitive) To harass; to irritate or distress.

(transitive) To seize or shake by the throat, especially of a dog or wolf.

(transitive) To touch repeatedly, to fiddle with.

(transitive, obsolete, Scotland) To strangle.

Synonyms

• (trouble mentally): fret

Noun

worry (countable and uncountable, plural worries)

A strong feeling of anxiety.

An instance or cause of such a feeling.

Source: Wiktionary

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Wor"ry, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Worried; p. pr. & vb. n. Worrying.] Etym: [OE. worowen, wirien, to strangle, AS. wyrgan in awyrgan; akin to D. worgen, wurgen, to strangle, OHG. wurgen, G. würgen, Lith. verszti, and perhaps to E. wring.]

1. To harass by pursuit and barking; to attack repeatedly; also, to tear or mangle with the teeth. A hellhound that doth hunt us all to death; That dog that had his teeth before his eyes, To worry lambs and lap their gentle blood. Shak.

2. To harass or beset with importunity, or with care an anxiety; to vex; to annoy; to torment; to tease; to fret; to trouble; to plague. "A church worried with reformation." South. Let them rail, And worry one another at their pleasure. Rowe. Worry him out till he gives consent. Swift.

3. To harass with labor; to fatigue. [Colloq.]

Wor"ry, v. i.

Definition: To feel or express undue care and anxiety; to manifest disquietude or pain; to be fretful; to chafe; as, the child worries; the horse worries.

Wor"ry, n.; pl. Worries (.

Definition: A state of undue solicitude; a state of disturbance from care and anxiety; vexation; anxiety; fret; as, to be in a worry. "The whir and worry of spindle and of loom." Sir T. Browne.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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