overstrung
Nerves too taut
Overstrung describes someone whose nerves are stretched too tight—tense, excitable, on edge: She was overstrung after weeks of sleepless nights.
The word comes from piano construction, where overstrung means the bass strings cross diagonally over the treble strings.
Applied to people, it suggests a similar tautness that might snap under pressure.
Firmly stretched or fitting
- tautStretched under tension
- overtightenedFastened beyond proper tension
- high-pitchedHigh in frequency
- sharpFine-edged, or astute
out-of-tune · overstretched · strained · tuning · strings · tension · pitch · soundboard
Anxiously restless
- anxiousTroubled by uncertainty
- tenseStrained or nervous
- on-edgeTense and uneasy
- wound-upNervously tense, overwrought
agitated · keyed-up · fidgety · restless · antsy · jumpy · skittish · twitchy
tight
Firmly stretched or fitting
- tautStretched under tension
- overtightenedFastened beyond proper tension
- high-pitchedHigh in frequency
sharp · out-of-tune · overstretched · strained · tuning · strings · tension · pitch · soundboard · hammer
jittery
Anxiously restless
wound-up · agitated · keyed-up · fidgety · restless · antsy · jumpy · skittish · twitchy · hyperactive
volatile
Liable to sudden change
- irritableEasily provoked to annoyance
- touchyEasily upset or offended
- sensitiveEasily affected emotionally
temperamental · mercurial · moody · petulant · peevish · snappish · thin-skinned · prickly · tetchy · querulous
delicate
Easily broken or harmed
- brittleLiable to shatter
- vulnerableOpen to attack
- frailWeak and breakable
breakable · tenuous · precarious · shaky · unsteady · unstable · weak · strained · taxed · overtaxed
overstrungunflappable
Impossible to disturb
imperturbable · steady · intrepid · even-tempered · stoic
string, overdo, stringy, strung, overreact, overthink, overwrought, overshoot, stringer