How to Use nervous in a Sentence

nervous

adjective
  • He gave a nervous glance at the clock.
  • He had a nervous habit of pulling at his hair.
  • He walked around with a nervous twitch.
  • The boy has a lot of nervous energy.
  • All this waiting is making me nervous.
  • She is nervous about her job interview.
  • It was a very nervous situation.
  • She suffers from a nervous disorder.
  • He has a nervous disposition.
  • His nervous mother is always worrying that something terrible will happen to him.
  • So, my mom is so nervous about that.
    — Aaron Parseghian, CBS News, 25 June 2026
  • Kippes was nervous for the first time.
    — Nicole Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 16 Mar. 2026
  • One nervous putt that slides past.
    — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 7 Mar. 2026
  • Some of these kids may feel too nervous to go to camp on their own.
    — Victoria Clayton, The Atlantic, 6 Aug. 2024
  • The Valkyries played a nervous first half.
    — Marcus Thompson Ii, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2025
  • But Fox was still nervous to even reach out.
    — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Oct. 2025
  • Ava gets nervous to go fast on a bike and is kind of still scared of it.
    — Kelly Martinez, Peoplemag, 8 Aug. 2023
  • The boy is too nervous or inept to do his part.
    — Honor Jones, The Atlantic, 3 Mar. 2026
  • At the start of the video, Phil looks nervous and timid.
    — Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
  • The rest of the world is more nervous about the dollar.
    — David Frum, The Atlantic, 22 Apr. 2026
  • Many of them are nervous about what the future will hold.
    — Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 26 June 2026
  • Wall Street, along with the rest of the world, is nervous.
    — Fred Imbert, CNBC, 7 Apr. 2026
  • The players looked worked up at times and the fans are nervous.
    — Ben Church, CNN Money, 20 Apr. 2026
  • Williams was nervous, but agreed to join the trial.
    — Kerry Breen, CBS News, 27 June 2026
  • There was a lot of nervous smiling.
    — Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
  • King had been nervous about the casting process.
    — Angelina Mazza, Vulture, 7 Apr. 2026
  • That made for a nervous few minutes.
    — Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 12 Apr. 2026
  • So there’s no reason to be nervous.
    — Jean E. Palmieri, Footwear News, 20 Aug. 2025
  • As home prices decline, those who bought at the peak are nervous.
    — Karim Doumar, Los Angeles Times, 17 Dec. 2022
  • Bird is used to the spotlight and will not get nervous in a close game.
    — Fred Bowen, Washington Post, 11 Aug. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nervous.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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