nail-biting
[ neyl-bahy-ting ]
noun
the act or practice of biting one's fingernails, especially as the result of anxiety or nervousness.
Informal. nervousness: The announcement that the trade agreement had been signed ended a week of nail-biting on Wall Street.
adjective
Informal. causing nervousness: The nail-biting part of the canoe trip was through the stretches of white water.
Origin of nail-biting
1First recorded in 1890–95
Other words from nail-biting
- nail-biter, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for nail-biting
nail-biting
noun
the act or habit of biting one's fingernails
anxiety or tension
(as modifier): nail-biting suspense
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Browse