1 [C] any of the long thin threads that carry messages between the brain and parts of the body, enabling you to move, feel pain, etc:
the optic nerve * He's off work with a trapped nerve in his neck. * nerve cells * nerve endings * Every nerve in her body was tense.
2 (nerves) [pl.] feelings of worry or anxiety:
Even after years as a singer, he still suffers from nerves before a performance. * I need something to calm / steady my nerves. * Everyone's nerves were on edge (= everyone felt tense). * He lives on his nerves (= is always worried). * By the end of the meal her nerves were completely frayed.
3 [U] the courage to do sth difficult or dangerous:
It took a lot of nerve to take the company to court. * I was going to have a go at parachuting but lost my nerve at the last minute. * He kept his nerve to win the final set 64.
4 [sing.,U] (informal) a way of behaving that other people think is rude or not appropriate:
I don't know how you have the nerve to show your face after what you said! * He's got a nerve asking us for money! * 'Then she demanded to see the manager!' 'What a nerve!'
IDIOMS
be a bag / bundle of nerves (informal) to be very nervous
get on sb's nerves (informal) to annoy sb:
That music is starting to get on my nerves. * It really gets on my nerves when people hang up without leaving a message.
have nerves of steel to be able to remain calm in a difficult or dangerous situation
hit / touch a (raw / sensitive) nerve to mention a subject that makes sb feel angry, upset, embarrassed, etc:
You touched a raw nerve when you mentioned his first wife.
moreatBRASS, STRAINv., WARn.
verb ~ yourself for sth / to do sth (written) to give yourself the courage or strength to do sth: [VNtoinf] He nerved himself to ask her out. [also VN]
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About this entry
This is a English–English dictionary entry.
Sourced from Main Dictionary in Lughet's collection.
This word also appears under other sources in Lughet's collection — see the list below.
This entry for nerve is sourced from Main Dictionary, one of the dictionaries and corpora merged into Lughet.
Is nerve a noun, verb, or something else?
In this entry, nerve is tagged as noun.
Does nerve appear elsewhere on Lughet?
Yes — nerve appears under other sources or language pairs in Lughet's collection. See the list below.
What is Lughet?
Lughet is a free trilingual dictionary covering nearly five million entries across Uyghur, Chinese, and English, drawn from more than ten source dictionaries and corpora.
