Meaning & use
worry
Last updated
Meanings
verbintransitive
To feel anxious or keep thinking about problems that might happen.
Grammar: Followed by about or over: worry about money.
Patterns
- worry about something
- worry that something will happen
Don't worry about the exam.
She worries when her son drives at night.
I worry that we will miss the train.
verbtransitive
To make someone feel anxious.
Grammar: Takes a person as the object: it worries me.
Patterns
- worry someone
His silence worries me.
The news worried the whole family.
It worries them that prices keep rising.
verbtransitive
To bother or annoy someone, or to keep pulling at something, as a dog does.
Grammar: Less common sense; dog worries a bone.
Patterns
- worry something
The dog worried the toy until it tore.
Don't worry me with small matters.
She worried the loose thread with her fingers.
nouncountable or uncountable
A feeling of anxiety or something that makes you anxious.
Grammar: Countable for a specific cause: a worry; uncountable for the feeling.
Patterns
- a worry about something
- no worries
Money is a constant worry for them.
He was sick with worry.
Her biggest worry is the deadline.
Word forms
| third person singular | worries |
|---|---|
| past tense | worried |
| past participle | worried |
| -ing form | worrying |
| plural | worries |
Common combinations
- worry about
- Stop worrying about what others think.
- don't worry
- Don't worry, I'll fix it.
- no worries
- No worries, take your time.
- worry sick
- We were worried sick about her.
- constant worry
- Debt was a constant worry.
- cause for worry
- The results are no cause for worry.
Synonyms and how they differ
- fret
- Fret suggests small, nagging worries.
- brood
- Brood means to think unhappily for a long time.
- concern
- Concern is more formal and a bit milder than worry.
- agonize
- Agonize means to worry very intensely.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: worry or wary?
worry vs wary
Wary means careful because of possible danger. It does not mean anxious in the same way.
Practice
Choose the correct preposition: Don't worry ___ the test; you will do fine.
Choose one answer.
Worry about is the standard pattern for the subject of anxiety.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “worry”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.