the heebie-jeebies

plural noun

informal
: nervous feelings
He gave me the heebie-jeebies.
I got the heebie-jeebies when I saw him looking at me.

Examples of the heebie-jeebies in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
But once upon a time in America, the whole concept gave some people the heebie-jeebies. — Randy McMullen, The Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2025 That said, the whimpering Chamberlain still gives me the heebie-jeebies. — Ollie Barder, Forbes, 29 Dec. 2024 Quite frankly, the sensation of moisture pouring from my underarms and trickling down my torso has given me the heebie-jeebies one too many times. — Sarah Kinonen, Allure, 27 Feb. 2026 If the ubiquitous metal organizers give you the heebie-jeebies, this bamboo take on the pot lid organizer is a bit less clinical with its warm color and rounded edges. — Alex Ronan, Architectural Digest, 1 Jan. 2026 While the idea of thousands of hairy spiders picking their way through parks and campgrounds might give many people the heebie-jeebies, in general these misunderstood, wandering arachnids are nothing to worry about. — Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 29 July 2025 This week, the pictures emerging of Taylor Swift and Sophie Turner hanging out in New York have given me the heebie-jeebies. — Raven Smith, Vogue, 22 Sep. 2023 Though some witch movies can be a little sinister or bone chilling, there are plenty less horrifying films that the whole family will enjoy and won’t totally give you the heebie-jeebies, including some Disney favorites. — Maggie Horton, Country Living, 5 July 2023

Rhymes for the heebie-jeebies

See All Rhymes for the heebie-jeebies

Browse Nearby Words

the heavens open (up)
the heebie-jeebies
the height of
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“The heebie-jeebies.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20heebie-jeebies. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All