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high-strung

high-strung

12 7.2
Being very nervous and easily upset
  • adjective
  • /haɪ strʌŋ/
translation icon : nervioso
  • He is often high-strung, reacting strongly to even small problems.
  • too high-strung
  • very high-strung
  • high-strung and nervous

He, he was very type A personality, very high stress, high strung.

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Examples

  • Okay, so she's a little high strung.

  • Man, you are really high-strung.

  • My mother is a little high strung.

  • My mother was high-strung and had trouble staying in the house for long.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • It's all right, we're just a little high-strung.

  • The pressures create a high-strung work environment.

    Academic text (1995)
  • Individually, these men were often high-strung and held different opinions.

    Academic text (1997)
  • Beckmann seems a little high strung for you.

  • I'm not nervous, just a little high-strung, that's all.

  • Streets filled with high-strung businessmen, sullen teenagers, and working-class couples pulse with energy.

    Blog text (19)

Synonyms

uptight
vshigh-strung
  • Informal
77 5.0

Nervous and tense so you cannot relax

focuses more on quick tension onset rather than just inability to relax
jumpy
vshigh-strung
  • Informal
54 4.3

Feeling nervous and easily startled by sudden sounds

is about fast tension onset rather than a startle reaction specifically
agitated
vshigh-strung
49 4.1

Feeling nervous, upset, and not calm

is about sudden tension and quick agitation rather than general trouble
edgy
vshigh-strung
41 5.2

Feeling nervous and tense, easily upset

is about sudden tension spikes rather than only general unease
jittery
vshigh-strung
26 4.5

Feeling nervous and unable to stay still

tends to become tense quickly rather than showing only restlessness
excitable
vshigh-strung
14 4.1

Quick to become excited or nervous

tends to mean quick nervous tension rather than a general emotional reaction
highly strung
vshigh-strung
1 7.4

Someone who is very nervous and easily upset

becomes tense quickly rather than showing long-term intensity
nervy
vshigh-strung
1 6.5

Feeling worried and tense before a difficult event

is about becoming tense quickly and easily under stress
overstrung
vshigh-strung
8.2

Feeling very nervous and tense because of worry

is about becoming tense quickly rather than mainly extreme intensity
high-keyed
vshigh-strung
8.3

Easily excited and quickly become anxious

is about quick tension build-up rather than general emotional reaction
flappable
vshigh-strung
8.8

Gets nervous or upset in stressful situations

is more about quick tension onset rather than only situational upset

Antonyms

735 1.0

Not showing strong feelings and being very still

22 2.6

Being calm and relaxed and not easily upset

How Nervous

high-strung
12 7.2
anxious
201 2.7
nervous
1.3
tense
310 3.6
uneasy
98 3.2

Surface Forms

high-strung positive

Morphology

high-strung = high + string (semi-transparent) = high + strung

The compound combines 'high' + the past-participle notion of 'strung' (tense), which yields an idiomatic 'very nervous' meaning that is somewhat guessable but not fully literal.

Etymology

High-strung comes from the image of a string pulled very tight; the parts high and strung suggest being 'tight' or 'tense'. So, imagine a guitar or violin string pulled high and ready to vibrate, and a high-strung person is easily tense or nervous.