: causing worry : creating reason for worry : troubling
a worrying trend/development
a worrying question
The presence of the knife on the stage of the murder was a worrying circumstance for Wilson.—
Mark Twain
Mark Twain
worryingly
adverb
When the secretary returned, she handed us an envelope that looked worryingly official …
—Caroline Alexander
Caroline Alexander
… money held by households has risen at a worryingly slow rate over the past year …
—The Economist
The Economist
Examples of worrying in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But Vanguard researchers see worrying signs in how hidden millionaires manage their money.
—Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 5 Feb. 2026
Most pages exude that unnerving queasiness which results from seeing a worrying lack of paragraph breaks in the foreseeable near future.
—Literary Hub, 5 Feb. 2026
Any shred of free time is too easy to fill with more work, more worrying, more commitments, and, of course, more aimless scrolling.
—Bekah Waalkes, The Atlantic, 3 Feb. 2026
Now, professionals’ belief in their ability to bounce back after a layoff has fallen to a worrying low.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 28 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for worrying
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Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 5 Feb. 2026
Most pages exude that unnerving queasiness which results from seeing a worrying lack of paragraph breaks in the foreseeable near future.
—Literary Hub, 5 Feb. 2026
Any shred of free time is too easy to fill with more work, more worrying, more commitments, and, of course, more aimless scrolling.
—Bekah Waalkes, The Atlantic, 3 Feb. 2026
Now, professionals’ belief in their ability to bounce back after a layoff has fallen to a worrying low.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 28 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for worrying
Cite this Entry
“Worrying.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/worrying. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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