nervously

nervously — adverb

1. in a way that shows you feel worried or frightened and cannot stay calm

1.adverbB1
Definition

in a way that shows you feel worried or frightened and cannot stay calm

Example

Kemi waited nervously outside the interview room, checking her notes one last time.

nervously + waited (verb of waiting/staying)

Eitan glanced nervously at the clock, hoping the train would arrive before the rain started.

nervously + glanced (verb of looking)

Common collocations
  • nervously + waited
  • nervously + glanced
  • nervously + laughed
  • nervously + fidgeted
  • nervously + tapped (one's fingers)
  • bit one's lip nervously
  • looked around nervously
  • spoke nervously
Synonyms
  • anxiously

    closer to the physical feeling of worry or unease; nervously focuses more on visible behaviour

  • tensely

    emphasises physical stiffness or inability to relax

  • fearfully

    stronger implication of being afraid of a specific bad outcome

Antonyms
  • calmly

    opposite in both inner feeling and outer behaviour

  • confidently

    opposite in showing certainty rather than worry

Usage Note

Commonly placed immediately after the verb (e.g., waited nervously) or before the verb (e.g., nervously glanced). The post-verb position is more frequent in everyday speech.

Common Mistakes

I nervously about the exam waited.
I waited nervously for the exam.
As an adverb of manner, nervously must modify a verb directly, not float freely in the sentence.

Word family

  • nervous
    adjectiveA2
  • nerve
    nounB1
  • nervousness
    nounB2
  • nerve-racking
    adjectiveB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

All four describe behaviour that arises from worry or fear, but the shade of meaning differs. Nervously (the most general) covers any visible sign of unease — fidgeting, stammering, avoiding eye contact. Anxiously adds a sense of persistent inner worry about something that may or may not happen; you can wait anxiously for test results but not *nervously for the same duration without showing outward signs. Tensely highlights physical stiffness: a tensely held posture suggests the person is bracing for impact. Fearfully points to a specific threat: you glance fearfully at a dark alley, not nervously. For everyday use, nervously is the safest choice because it works in almost any worry-related context.

nervously ↗anxiously ↗tensely ↗fearfully ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

  • waited nervously
  • glanced nervously
  • laughed nervously
  • looked around nervously
  • spoke nervously
  • bit (one's) lip nervously
  • fidgeted nervously
  • tapped (one's) fingers nervously

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Formed in English by adding the suffix '-ly' (which turns adjectives into adverbs) to 'nervous'. 'Nervous' comes from the Latin word 'nervosus', meaning 'full of nerves' or 'sinewy', and originally referred to having strong sinews or muscles. By the 1600s it began to mean 'affecting the nerves', and by the 1800s it took on today's meaning of 'easily agitated or worried'.