1
as in uneasy
lacking or denying rest
the worried mother spent a restless night, tossing and turning in bed for hours
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in anxious
marked by or causing agitation or uncomfortable feelings
the figure skater was visibly restless as she waited for her scores to be posted
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of restless
After the string of market busts, Akasha was restless and paranoid about keeping his DMT production in one place for too long.
—
Andy Greenberg, Wired News, 22 May 2025
The film will continue in this restless, darting manner, as Martone, co-writer Ippolita di Majo and editor Jacopo Quadri aim to cultivate some sense of intrigue around Sapienza’s journey by withholding key information about the past until fairly arbitrary points in the overall structure.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 20 May 2025
There is a kind of sadness that comes from living in a restless state of FOMO — or fear of missing out, as the acronym goes.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 25 May 2025
As congressional Democrats have struggled to combat Trump this year, attorneys general have represented a tangible — and effective — counter to the president for restless Democratic voters.
—Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for restless
Andy Greenberg, Wired News, 22 May 2025
The film will continue in this restless, darting manner, as Martone, co-writer Ippolita di Majo and editor Jacopo Quadri aim to cultivate some sense of intrigue around Sapienza’s journey by withholding key information about the past until fairly arbitrary points in the overall structure.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 20 May 2025
There is a kind of sadness that comes from living in a restless state of FOMO — or fear of missing out, as the acronym goes.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 25 May 2025
As congressional Democrats have struggled to combat Trump this year, attorneys general have represented a tangible — and effective — counter to the president for restless Democratic voters.
—Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for restless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for restless
Adjective
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Some are bigger than others: economic uncertainty, changing customer behaviors, personal isolation, leadership burnout, marketing crisis, brand reputation, uneasy board members, investor expectations, consumer confidence, health issues and family challenges.—
Nancy Padberg,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2025
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But Musk’s rebuke has energized fiscal hawks in the Senate who were already uneasy with the legislation’s scope.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
3 June 2025
Adjective
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On Tires, Gerben plays Will, the anxious and unqualified son of the auto-repair chain's owner.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
5 June 2025
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As a result, children can become frustrated and anxious when trying to learn math.—
Jennifer Pierce,
USA Today,
3 June 2025
Adjective
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Following the incident, Walters sent a former Green Beret soldier to retrieve her daughter and bring her to a school in Idaho for troubled teens, where the teenager remained for the next three years.—
Nicole Briese,
People.com,
12 June 2025
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Although an acclaimed 2014 biopic, Love & Mercy, chronicled the musician’s rise, fall and return to relative stability, the magnitude of Wilson’s work towers above his legend as a troubled genius.—
Barry Walters,
Billboard,
11 June 2025
Adjective
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The withdrawn teen obsessively draws dark spiders in class and shows a disturbing fixation on news reports of school shootings.—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
6 June 2025
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His disturbing legacy drew the attention of filmmaker and former HBO executive Kary Antholis, who had followed the case for decades.—
JP Mangalindan,
Time,
4 June 2025
Adjective
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On the flipside, stablecoins could pose a substantial risk to banks and the banking system as a whole, particularly if they are allowed to pay interest (which remains unsettled with regulators).—
Michael Abbott,
Forbes.com,
3 June 2025
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More storms in Kansas City’s forecast The weather pattern will remain unsettled with multiple chances for storms later in the week, the weather service said.—
Robert A. Cronkleton,
Kansas City Star,
2 June 2025
Adjective
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But recently, her videos detailing her tense, hours-long encounter with Customs at MIA went viral.—
Amanda Rosa,
Miami Herald,
4 June 2025
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The lunch came at a tense time for the family as Patterson's relationship with her estranged husband had been deteriorating.—
Chloe Mayer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 June 2025
Adjective
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Moving out of Seattle also put almost 2,000 miles between the company’s top brass and its restive unions, which might have been one of the biggest attractions from the corner-office point of view.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
2 June 2025
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After South Sudan declared independence, the regions bordering the breakaway country remained restive, and the Bashir regime began deploying a new paramilitary force there.—
Nicolas Niarchos,
New Yorker,
19 May 2025
Adjective
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The video highlighted how visibly nervous Jessie was while using jokes to get through the show.—
Tomás Mier,
Rolling Stone,
6 June 2025
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There’s nothing to be nervous about going into a spray tan.—
Catharine Malzahn,
Glamour,
5 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Restless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/restless. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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