sweating bullets
Visibly, intensely nervous
Sweating bullets means experiencing intense anxiety or nervousness—the image is of perspiration so extreme it forms droplets the size of bullets.
Someone might sweat bullets waiting for test results, during a job interview, or when caught in a lie: I was sweating bullets until they announced the winner.
The phrase emphasizes visible, physical manifestation of stress.
- tenseStrained or nervous
- worriedTroubled by uncertainty
- hot seatPosition under heavy scrutiny
- dreadIntense anticipatory fear
- pit in stomachVisceral anxiety sensation
anxious · brow · nervous · panic · deer in headlights · fight or flight · scared stiff · under pressure · under the gun · interrogation · anxiety · trembling · high stakes · moment of truth · dry mouth · nail-biting · heart pounding · pulse
- Anxietyanxiety, nervousness, panic, worry, generalized anxiety
- overexertionoverwork, burnout, overtraining, straining, overdrive
sweating bulletscool as a cucumber
Extremely calm and composed
calm and collected · relaxed · at ease · unruffled · composed
sweat, bullet, sweaty, sweating, perspiration, sweated, sweatiest, antiperspirant, sweatier