different between nervous vs stressful

English

Etymology

From Middle English nerv?us (“containing nerves; made up of nerve-like fibres; of or relating to nerves; containing sinews or tendons, sinewy; affecting sinews or tendons”), from Latin nerv?sus (“nervous; sinewy; energetic, vigorous”), from nervus (“nerve; muscle; sinew, tendon; (figuratively) energy, power; nerve; force, strength, vigour”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *snéh?wr? (“sinew, tendon”)) + -?sus (suffix meaning ‘full of, prone to’ forming adjectives from nouns). The English word is analysable as nerve +? -ous.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?n??v?s/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?n??v?s/
• Hyphenation: nerv?ous

Adjective

nervous (comparative more nervous, superlative most nervous)

1. Of sinews and tendons.
   1. (obsolete) Full of sinews. [14th–18th c.]
   2. (obsolete) Having strong or prominent sinews; sinewy, muscular. [15th–19th c.]
   3. (obsolete) Of a piece of writing, literary style etc.: forceful, powerful. [17th–19th c.]
      • 1788, Frances Burney, Journals & Letters, Penguin 2001, p. 264:

        Nervous, clear, and striking, was almost all that he uttered […].

2. Of nerves.
   1. Supplied with nerves; innervated. [from 14th c.]
   2. Affecting the nerves or nervous system. [from 15th c.]
   3. (botany, obsolete) Nervose. [17th–18th c.]
   4. Easily agitated or alarmed; edgy, on edge. [from 18th c.]

      Synonyms: excitable, high-strung, hypersensitive; see also Thesaurus:nervous
   5. Apprehensive, anxious, hesitant, worried. [from 18th c.]

      Synonyms: see Thesaurus:nervous

      Antonyms: calm, relaxed

Derived terms

Related terms

• nervosity

Translations

Notes

References

Further reading

• nervous (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• nervous in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• nervous in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

English

Etymology

From stress +? -ful.

Pronunciation

• enPR: str?s'f?l, IPA^(key): /?st??sf?l/

Adjective

stressful (comparative more stressful, superlative most stressful)

1. Irritating; causing stress.
   • 1970, Richard Nelson Bolles, What Color Is Your Parachute?

     I have always argued that change becomes stressful and overwhelming only when you've lost any sense of the constancy of your life. You need firm ground to stand on. From there, you can deal with that change.'

Related terms

• stress
• stressed
• stressfully

Translations