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twittery

twittery

1 7.9
Feeling nervous, excited, and unable to stay still
  • adjective
  • /ˈtwɪtəri/
  • Informal
: nervioso
  • The children were twittery with excitement as they waited for the show to start.

Examples

  • She felt quite twittery before her big presentation.

  • He always gets twittery before important meetings at work.

  • She felt twittery before giving her first public speech.

  • Why are you so twittery today?

  • The children were twittery with excitement as they awaited the arrival of the magician.

  • She became twittery when she realized she would be meeting her favorite author.

  • He felt twittery after drinking too much coffee before the big presentation.

Synonyms

twitchy
vstwittery
  • Informal
13 4.6

Feeling nervous and unable to stay still

is general nervous excitement or talkiness without sudden twitching
fidgety
vstwittery
9 4.8

Unable to stay still because you feel nervous

is broader nervous excitement that can include talk or restlessness
atwitter
vstwittery
  • Literature
2 8.9

Feeling excited and nervous while waiting for something

is general nervous excitement or restlessness not only from anticipation
fluttery
vstwittery
2 4.9

Feeling nervous and excited with a quick, shaky feeling in the body

is more general nervous excitement or talkativeness rather than light shakiness
talky-talky
vstwittery
  • Informal
1 9.6

Full of long conversations that feel boring

is nervous excitement sometimes talkative but not necessarily tedious or excessive
toey
vstwittery
  • Australian
1 9.9

Feeling nervous and restless before an important event

is broader nervous excitement including talkativeness not only anticipation
chattery
vstwittery
  • Informal
1 5.4

Talking a lot in a friendly, lively way

is nervous excitement that also involves restlessness or agitation not mere chatter

How Nervous

panicked
54 4.6
anxious
230 2.7
jittery
25 4.5
twittery
  • Informal
1 7.9
uneasy
92 3.2

Surface Forms

twittery positive

Morphology

twittery = twitter (transparent) = twitter + y

Formed from the base 'twitter' plus the productive adjectival suffix '-y', so the adjective meaning 'characterized by twittering' (nervous/talkative) is directly derived.

Etymology

Twittery comes from the sound word twitter, which copies birds' quick chirps and is like the familiar word tweet. A helpful way to remember the first meaning is to imagine a person who is 'twittery' as nervous or restless and talking in short, quick bursts, like a bird that keeps chirping.