1342
bundle of nerves (informal) to be very nervous ^ get on sb’s 'nerves (informal) to annoy sb j$[$;;
flMl'fehave nerves of steel to be able to remain
calm in a difficult or dangerous situation
hit/touch
a (raw/sensitive) nerve to mention a subject that makes sb feel
angry, upset, embarrassed, etc. 14 A H HF; M zft fe: You touched a raw
nerve when you mentioned his first wife. fei&33dfeMH~— 'Ml TfeM-ffifeo
— more at brass, strain v.,
WAR
■ verb ~ yourself for sth/to do sth to give yourself the courage or
strength to do sth flsf^fefe:
[VN
to inf] He nerved himself to ask her out. feibSLIt^AM feUA0 [also VN]
'nerve centre {BrE) (NAmE ’nerve center) noun the place from which
an activity or organization is controlled and instructions are sent out
felSAfK; ^f!l A'l>
’nerve gas noun a poisonous gas used
in war that attacks your central nervous
system fe jgHSiii; fe
mm (mmgw&j&miEmm)
SYNONYMS
nervous
neurotic ♦ edgy ♦ on edge ♦ jittery * nervy ♦ highly strung
All these
words describe people who are easily frightened or are behaving in a frightened
way. IU±
%'mmm. m&o
nervous easily
worried or frightened fefejSMM,
H M, life M: She was of a nervous
disposition. See also the
entry for worried.
A J®. worried neurotic not behaving in a reasonable, calm
way, because you are worried about sth fe .
fe££
; istltM: She became neurotic about keeping
the house clean.
edgy (informal) nervous
or bad-tempered fe M Si M, &
M: He became edgy and defensive, fe
on
edge nervous or
bad-tempered feMiJK^AM,
, J§ : She was always on edge before an
interview.
EDGY OR ON EDGE? ffl edgy 3* on edge ?
Both these
words mean the same, but edgy can also describe a time or an event.
IM±WMSA+SIIj, fe. edgy It was an edgy
match with both players making mistakes. f/M t£fg|X KiLAg-fEffo Onedgecan also
describe sb’s nerves. * on edge 3KnJ?12l?AMfe His
nerves had been on edge [= he had been nervous or bad-tempered) all
day. fell ASI'll'fiiJIIo jittery (informal) anxious and
nervous fe^3fcAA M, >l> fe r" ftfJ: All this talk of job
losses was making him jittery. k/r AA Aik Mfelgfe fe Afe
A'TW
nervy (BrE informal) anxious
and nervous; easily made nervous fe^liSM. M3jsKL felgUM:
She
was weepy and nervy, anxious about her baby.
highly
strung/high-strung nervous
and easily upset feM&AAM. a highly strung
child/horse mzmmT;
PATTERNS AND
COLLOCATIONS
■
She’s a rather nervous/neurotic/nervy girl.
■
He’s not the nervous/neurotic/nervy type.
I’m feeling
very/a bit/really nervous/edgy/on edge/jittery today.
nerve-less /'n3:vlas; NAmE
'n3:rv-/ adj. 1 having no strength or feeling A A M; A M: The knife fell from
her nerveless fingers. J] /Afe A A M A „ 2 having
no fear AHM; HIfcM: She is a
nerveless
rider. fel|~feI§3fcMM Ao H22 nervous 'nerve-racking (also 'nerve-wracking) adj. making you feel very
nervous and worried 4* AAfeM'JftM; 4“
nervOUS On* /'n3:vas; NAmE
'n3irvas/ adj.
1 ~
(about/of sth) anxious about sth or afraid of sth M M (ft
; fe tfc MConsumers are very nervous about the future. 0 He had been
nervous about inviting us. feA—11 A tfc ii if f] 0 o The horse may be
nervous of cars.
0 I felt really nervous
before the interview. flSAAo 0 a nervous
glance/smile/voice (= one that shows that you feel
anxious)JlfefrA it / P S 0 By the time the police arrived, I was
a nervous wreck.
wmm&H, elh confident
o note at worried 2 easily worried or frightened
fe£$ JUM; lifeM: She was a thin, nervous
girl. M Ji A A 0IJ M XH
fe M it ® JL 0 o He’s not the
nervous type. feAJi£P#£FMi£MAo O She was
of a nervous disposition. fe A fe § i? „ 3 connected
with the body’s nerves and often affecting you
mentally or emotionally fe £5 %
i% M : a nervous condition/ disorder/disease fe & M <k lk
M; fe M %L; fe*£fE 0 She
was in a state of nervous exhaustion, feMfe^feA ITSTTCl see shadow n. ► ner-vous-ly adv.: She smiled nervously. fegf
tb ner-vous-ness
noun [u]: He tried to
hide his nervousness. fei^Ulftitfp feim^Ao
nervous breakdown (also breakdown) noun a period of mental
illness in which sb becomes very depressed, anxious and tired, and cannot deal
with normal life fe^^il: to have a nervous breakdown ,il fe^«i3
'nervous system noun the system of all
the nerves in the body fe £5 %. —
see also central nervous
system
nervy /'ns:vi; NAmE
'n3:rvi/ adj. (informal) 1 (BrE) anxious and nervous ^ £§t
j$ ; % ^ ^ o note at
nervous 2 (NAmE) brave and confident
in a way that might offend other people, or show a lack of respect
#JSW; BAM
-ness suffix (in nouns the quality, state or character of -MfeM ( ) : dryness
A# o
blindness AHI o silliness
B.M Nes-sie
/'nesi/
noun (informal) =
m noun 1 [C] a hollow
place or structure that a bird makes or chooses for laying its eggs in and
sheltering its young H; A, % — picture o page
R28 2 [C] a
place where insects or other small creatures live and produce their young HA;
^ 3 [sing.] a secret place which is full of bad people and their activities M E fe; a
nest of thieves MU 4 [sing.] the
home, thought of as the safe place where parents bring up their children %; A
3^: to leave the nest (= leave your parents’ home) fij ff A 3s ^ — see also empty nest 5 [C, usually sing ] a group or set of similar things that are
made to fit inside each other ( a
nest of tables
—HHA ITC71 see FEATHER V., FLY
V., HORNET, MARE ■ verb 1 [V] to make and
use a nest M ; H : Thousands of seabirds
are nesting on the cliffs. AAA A M&'2 [VN] {technical A in) to put types
of information together, or inside each other, so that they form a single unit
^$( §1) nest box (also 'nesting box) noun a box provided for
a
bird to make its nest in
J§, Hit;
' nest egg noun (informal) a
sum of money that you save to use in the future fitilrik
nes-tle /'nesi/ verb
[+adv./prep.] 1 [V] to sit or lie down in a warm or soft place fefe;
gfigfel* ( ) : He
hugged her and she nestled against his chest, fe fe fe Ir fe, fe
I<J fe fe fe M ff M o 2 [VN] to put or hold sb/sth in a
comfortable position in a warm or soft place fe; AS: He nestled the baby
in his arms, feff SfeS'K