Meaning & use
worrywart
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountableinformaldisapproving
Someone who worries a lot, often about small things that are unlikely to happen.
Grammar: Countable noun: use a/an or the, and the plural is worrywarts.
Patterns
- a worrywart about something
- be a worrywart
- call someone a worrywart
Don't be such a worrywart—the flight is only delayed by an hour.
My mother is a worrywart who calls me if I'm five minutes late.
He's a worrywart about money, even though he has plenty saved.
Word forms
| plural | worrywarts |
|---|
Common combinations
- a real worrywart
- My aunt is a real worrywart when it comes to storms.
- a bit of a worrywart
- I'm a bit of a worrywart about exams, so I start studying early.
- be a worrywart about
- She's a worrywart about her son's health.
- such a worrywart
- Stop being such a worrywart; everything will be fine.
- call someone a worrywart
- His friends call him a worrywart because he checks the news constantly.
Synonyms and how they differ
- worrier
- Worrier is a more neutral, standard word for someone who worries; worrywart is informal and often teasing.
- fussbudget
- Fussbudget emphasizes being fussy and hard to please, while worrywart focuses on anxiety and fear.
- nervous Nellie
- Nervous Nellie is an informal, sometimes slightly mocking term for a timid or anxious person; worrywart is more common and gentler.
Commonly confused: worrywart or worrier?
worrywart vs worrier
Worrier is the standard, neutral noun for a person who worries; worrywart is informal and often used with a teasing tone.
Practice
My brother is such a ______ that he checks the weather forecast five times a day.
Choose one answer.
The sentence needs a countable noun after 'such a' to name the person, so 'worrywart' fits. 'Worrier' is also a noun but is more neutral and less likely in this informal, teasing context; 'worrying' and 'worried' are not nouns.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “worrywart”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.