Meaning & use
neurosis
A mental or emotional disorder marked by excessive anxiety, obsessive thoughts, or irrational fears, without loss of touch with reality.
See it in a sentence
Her constant worry about germs developed into a full-blown neurosis over several years.
The therapist traced his neurosis back to a childhood fear of abandonment.
A note on using this word
Neurosis is largely outdated as a clinical diagnosis, replaced by more specific terms like anxiety disorder, though it remains common in everyday speech.
Words with a similar meaning
anxiety disorderobsession
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
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