uneasy

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʌnˈiːzi/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: un‧easy
• Rhymes: -iːzi

Etymology 1

From Middle English unesy, equivalent to un- +‎ easy. Merged with Middle English unethe, uneathe (“difficult, not easy”). See uneath.

Adjective

uneasy (comparative uneasier, superlative uneasiest)

1. (rare) Not easy; difficult.

Translations

Not easy; difficult

• Bulgarian: труден (bg) (truden)
• Catalan: difícil (ca), complicat (ca)
• Finnish: vaikea (fi)
• French: pas facile, difficile (fr)
• German: uneinfach
• Indonesian: sulit (id)
• Maori: uaua
• Romanian: dificil (ro), complicat (ro)

Etymology 2

From Middle English unesy, unaisie (“not comforting”), from un- + esy (“comfortable, at ease”). More at easy.

Adjective

uneasy (comparative more uneasy or uneasier, superlative most uneasy or uneasiest)

1. Restless; disturbed by pain, anxiety.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:nervous

   I've been uneasy about your friend ever since I met him. Are you sure we can trust him?

   • 1928, Lawrence R. Bourne, chapter 17, in Well Tackled!‎^[1]:

     Commander Birch was a trifle uneasy when he found there was more than a popple on the sea; it was, in fact, distinctly choppy.

2. Not easy in manner; constrained

   Synonyms: stiff, awkward, ungraceful

   He was behaving in an uneasy way.

3. Causing discomfort or constraint

Derived terms

• uneasy lies the head that wears a crown

 

Related terms

• unease

Translations

restless; disturbed by pain, anxiety

• Albanian: i shqetësuar (sq)
• Bulgarian: тревожен (bg) (trevožen), неспокоен (bg) (nespokoen)
• Finnish: levoton (fi), rauhaton (fi), ahdistunut (fi)
• German: unbehaglich (de)
• Greek: ανήσυχος (el) (anísychos)
• Indonesian: gelisah (id)
• Irish: anacair
• Latin: anxius (la)
• Maori: māihi, pāihi, mawera (in mind), ārangi, pakaihi, anipā, āwangawanga, hopohopo, manawarau, tūmatatenga, hārato, hikirangi, koromāungaunga, maniore, tīhengi
• Plautdietsch: onheimlich, beklommen
• Scottish Gaelic: an-fhoiseil
• Vietnamese: nao nao (vi)

not easy in manner; constrained

• Bulgarian: неловък (bg) (nelovǎk), стеснителен (bg) (stesnitelen)
• Finnish: vaivaantunut, kiusaantunut
• Persian: معذب (fa) (mo'azzab)