Definition

Noun: A person who habitually worries excessively or needlessly about potential problems or unfortunate events that might occur.

Usage

A "worrywart" is a mildly informal or colloquial term used to describe someone who is constantly anxious or fretful, often about things that are unlikely to happen. It carries a tone of gentle teasing or affectionate criticism rather than harsh judgment.

Examples

• She's such a worrywart; she starts fretting about being late a full two hours before we need to leave.
• Don't be such a worrywart! The weather forecast is fine for our picnic.
• My father is a classic worrywart, always imagining the worst-case scenario for every situation.

Advanced Usage

• The term can sometimes be used reflexively or in self-description: "I know I'm being a worrywart, but I just want to make sure everything is perfect."
• It functions as a predicate noun following linking verbs like "is" or "being."

Variants and Related Words

• Worry (verb/noun): The root word, meaning to feel anxious or troubled about actual or potential problems.
• Worrier (noun): A more neutral synonym for a person who worries.
• Pessimist (noun): A person who tends to see the worst aspect of things or believes the worst will happen. This is related but focuses on a negative outlook rather than the anxious feeling itself.

Synonyms

• Fussbudget: A person who is fussy or fretful about minor details.
• Nervous Nellie (idiomatic, informal): A timid, worrying, or overly cautious person.
• Anxious person: A more formal and direct description.

Idioms and Related Phrases

• To worry oneself sick: To worry so much that it makes one feel ill.
  • Example: She'll worry herself sick over the exam results if we don't distract her.
• To borrow trouble: To worry about something that may not happen (similar in concept to a worrywart's behavior).
  • Example: There's no point borrowing trouble by imagining all the things that could go wrong.

Noun

1. thinks about unfortunate things that might happen