tenterhooks
Pins for stretching
Tenterhooks are hooks used to stretch cloth on a frame (a tenter) during manufacturing.
The phrase on tenterhooks means in a state of anxious suspense or nervous anticipation: We were on tenterhooks waiting for the test results.
The image is of being stretched taut like fabric.
The singular tenterhook rarely appears outside the idiom.
Stretched under tension
- stretchedPulled to lengthen
- strainedUnder uncomfortable tension
- tightFirmly stretched or fitting
- tenseStrained or nervous
fraught · brittle · frayed · coiled · wound · spring-loaded · pressure · stress
Uneasy and apprehensive
- apprehensiveFearful of future events
- uneasyTroubled, not calm
- worriedTroubled by uncertainty
- agitatedEmotionally disturbed, restless
restless · jittery · edgy · stressed · fretting · overwrought · high-strung · wired
Troubled by uncertainty
- waitingRemaining in expectation
- uncertainNot firmly known
- nail-bitingExtremely tense or anxious
- cliffhangerSuspenseful unresolved ending
breathless · edge-of-seat · white-knuckle · pins-and-needles · agonizing · unbearable · interminable · excruciating
taut
Stretched under tension
tense · fraught · brittle · frayed · coiled · wound · spring-loaded · pressure · stress · rack
nervous
Uneasy and apprehensive
- apprehensiveFearful of future events
- uneasyTroubled, not calm
- worriedTroubled by uncertainty
agitated · restless · jittery · edgy · stressed · fretting · overwrought · high-strung · wired · fretful
anxious
Troubled by uncertainty
- waitingRemaining in expectation
- uncertainNot firmly known
- nail-bitingExtremely tense or anxious
cliffhanger · breathless · edge-of-seat · white-knuckle · pins-and-needles · agonizing · unbearable · interminable · excruciating · torturous
expectant
Awaiting something foreseen
awaiting · bracing · dreading · hoping · wondering · watching · vigilant · alert · poised · ready
tenterhooksrelaxation
State of being unwound
ease · calm · tranquility · serenity · composure
- on tenterhooksNervously awaiting an outcome