as in worry
disapproving
worried talk or behavior
There has been a lot of silly hand-wringing over the latest hike in interest rates.
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Recent Examples of hand-wringing
Popular culture parodies and hand-wringing headlines devalued this work by constructing influencers as glib and narcissistic.
—
Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
There was a fair bit of hand-wringing entering Tuesday’s contest about where or if Jeff Skinner fit into the equation.
—Daniel Nugent-Bowman, The Athletic, 31 Dec. 2024
While hand-wringing Democrats and the media have focused on President Biden, Donald Trump met with Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister.
—Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 18 July 2024
Please, no more contrived hand-wringing and pearl-clutching about the Trump dictatorship.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 July 2024
Since last Monday, when Buckingham Palace announced that King Charles III had been diagnosed with cancer, the seventy-five-year-old monarch has been the subject of both hand-wringing concern and frenzied speculation.
—Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 12 Feb. 2024
Today, that hand-wringing delay has been nearly eliminated.
—Katie Palmer, STAT, 1 Dec. 2023
The combination of the new stadium, hand-wringing fans and — worst of all — disinterested indifference in the community has ripple effects beyond one locker room.
—Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Nov. 2023
Both episodes benefit from a curiosity about human nature that goes beyond hand-wringing monologues about our capacity for greed or complacency, and an affection for people in all our absurd and messy glory.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Mar. 2023
Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
There was a fair bit of hand-wringing entering Tuesday’s contest about where or if Jeff Skinner fit into the equation.
—Daniel Nugent-Bowman, The Athletic, 31 Dec. 2024
While hand-wringing Democrats and the media have focused on President Biden, Donald Trump met with Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister.
—Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 18 July 2024
Please, no more contrived hand-wringing and pearl-clutching about the Trump dictatorship.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 July 2024
Since last Monday, when Buckingham Palace announced that King Charles III had been diagnosed with cancer, the seventy-five-year-old monarch has been the subject of both hand-wringing concern and frenzied speculation.
—Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 12 Feb. 2024
Today, that hand-wringing delay has been nearly eliminated.
—Katie Palmer, STAT, 1 Dec. 2023
The combination of the new stadium, hand-wringing fans and — worst of all — disinterested indifference in the community has ripple effects beyond one locker room.
—Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Nov. 2023
Both episodes benefit from a curiosity about human nature that goes beyond hand-wringing monologues about our capacity for greed or complacency, and an affection for people in all our absurd and messy glory.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hand-wringing
Noun
-
Inflation, tariff worries drive consumers' outlooks to lowest levels in 12 years What are tariffs?—
Bailey Schulz,
USA Today,
3 Apr. 2025
-
Uncontrollable feelings of worry, unease, nervousness, and fear characterize anxiety disorders.—
Mark Gurarie,
Verywell Health,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Now, in the case of the United States, there’s no concern whatsoever with what anybody thinks on the outside.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2025
-
That’s a major concern for media as advertisers review budgets.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
10 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Consumer sentiment fell sharply in April, marking the fourth consecutive month of declines, as an intensifying trade war fueled anxiety over American jobs and rising inflation.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
11 Apr. 2025
-
Is loyalty to an old friend and/or anxiety about having a kid reason enough to spend a day or two away from a wife who could go into labor at any minute?—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
10 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Trump faces growing pushback from his own party The markets were still in a panic on Monday when an unverified report circulated that the president was considering a 90-day pause on the tariffs.—
Time,
Time,
10 Apr. 2025
-
Two more came in July of 2002, when panic over corporate fraud set-off by Enron’s collapse the year before, finally eased.—
Brandon Kochkodin,
Forbes.com,
9 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
In the episode, Duran describes his mental anguish during that time and some of the steps he’s taken since then to improve his mental health.—
Jen McCaffrey,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
-
And all of that anguish of going through that process of retrying to develop my body in a way that will never be the same anyway.—
Outside Online,
Outside Online,
26 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
The spread of antivaccine misinformation in the previous year had caused fear and uncertainty, which kept many families from vaccinating their children against measles.—
Dr. Josh Green,
CNN Money,
5 Apr. 2025
-
By the end of the month, the new moon in Taurus invites you to embrace more intimacy and transformation in your love life, even if that means facing your fears in the process.—
Valerie Mesa,
People.com,
5 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Despite escalating trade tensions and market turbulence since Trump took office in January, the economy remains in solid shape by several key measures.—
Max Zahn,
ABC News,
10 Apr. 2025
-
Taylor compared the tension producers navigate to that of the lawyers in the room.—
Lauren Coates,
Variety,
10 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Their primary motivation for entering tentative talks over Gomez was desperation, due to their need to comply with the Premier League’s PSR by June 30.—
Chris Waugh,
New York Times,
28 Mar. 2025
-
Butler missed a desperation 3-point attempt at the buzzer as the Wolves lost, 114-113.—
Zach Harper,
The Athletic,
25 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hand-wringing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hand-wringing. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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