tad nervous
1
6.3
- adjective
- Informal
:
un poco nervioso
- I get what you're saying, and while I agree with some of it, I honestly hadn't been worried about the publishing industry at all, and this actually makes me a tad nervous.
Examples
-
He hopes that maybe she is just a tad nervous—which would suggest that some atavistic memory is at work inside her; the place is working its magic.
Fiction book (1990) -
Maybe I was a tad nervous.
Academic text (2011) -
Being unfamiliar and therefore a tad nervous, I was out early the following morning, and I wandered the hallway toward the aromas of the kitchen.
Fiction book (1996) -
Before giving her speech, she felt a tad nervous about addressing such a large audience.
-
Although he was excited for the big game, he admitted he was a tad nervous about performing well.
-
As the exam approached, I was a tad nervous about forgetting everything I had studied.
Synonyms
∞
1.3
Feeling worried and easily frightened
201
2.7
Feeling worried or nervous about something that might happen
26
4.5
Feeling nervous and unable to stay still
2
4.9
Feeling nervous and excited with a quick, shaky feeling in the body
1
9.9
Feeling nervous and restless before an important event
Antonyms
How Nervous
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'slightly nervous' is directly and compositionally derived from combining 'tad' (a small amount) with 'nervous' (anxious). This is a standard degree-modifier + adjective pattern common across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the MWE's meaning (noting that 'tad' is informal).
Etymology
Tad nervous may come from the small word tad, once short for tadpole, a tiny young frog, so the image is of something very small. That's why tad nervous means 'a little' nervous or 'slightly anxious'.