Definition

1. Noun:
   • A state of nervousness, agitation, or impatience: The quality of being unable to remain still, calm, or submissive, often due to anxiety, boredom, or dissatisfaction.
   • A tendency to be quick to take fright or become unruly: A state of being easily alarmed or resistant to control.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • The restiveness of the crowd grew as the speech dragged on.
  • She felt a growing restiveness during the long meeting and needed to step outside.
  • The horse's restiveness made it difficult for the rider to control.

Advanced Usage

• "to show restiveness": to display signs of nervous impatience or resistance.
  • The team began to show restiveness with the manager's indecisive leadership.
• "a sense of restiveness": a feeling of agitated impatience.
  • A sense of restiveness spread through the population as economic conditions worsened.

Variants and Related Words

• Restive (adj): Unable to keep still or be controlled, especially because of boredom, dissatisfaction, or anxiety.
  • The audience grew restive during the technical delay.
• Restlessly (adv): In a restless manner.
  • He paced restlessly around the room.

Synonyms

• Agitation: A state of anxiety or nervous excitement.
• Fidgetiness: The quality of making small movements through nervousness or impatience.
• Uneasiness: A feeling of anxiety or discomfort.
• Impatience: The tendency to be quickly irritated or eager for change.

Related Phrases

• To chafe at the bit: To show impatience or irritation under restraint or delay. (This idiom is often used in contexts similar to "restiveness").
  • The ambitious young employee was chafing at the bit, eager for a promotion.

Noun

1. characterized by nervousness and quickness to take fright
2. the anxious feeling you have when you have the jitters