don't psych yourself out

Meaning

1. 1phrasefixed phraseinformal

   used to tell someone not to make themselves nervous or less confident by worrying too much about something.

   Grammar: It is an imperative: you say it directly to someone. The full verb is 'psych yourself out', and you can change the person: 'I psyched myself out'.

   Patterns

   • don't psych yourself out about something
   • don't psych yourself out before something

   You've practiced enough—don't psych yourself out before the interview.

   Don't psych yourself out by imagining the worst possible result.

   She told her teammate, "Don't psych yourself out; just play your normal game."

Common combinations

psych yourself out before a test

He always psychs himself out before a test and then forgets everything.

psych yourself out about something

Try not to psych yourself out about the presentation.

get psyched out

The loud crowd got the young player psyched out.

psych someone out

Their constant trash talk was meant to psych him out.

Synonyms and how they differ

intimidate yourself

This is more formal and suggests fear caused by someone else, while 'psych yourself out' means you cause your own nervousness.

overthink

This focuses on thinking too much rather than on losing confidence or becoming nervous.

Word family

psyched adjective

Informal: excited and ready, as in 'I'm psyched for the game.'

psyched out adjective

Made nervous or less confident, as in 'He was psyched out by the crowd.'

Commonly confused: don't psych yourself out or psych? don't psych yourself out or psyche?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “don't psych yourself out”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words