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Antonyms for nerve

Grammar : Noun, verb
Spell : nurv
Phonetic Transcription : nÉœrv

Definition of nerve

Origin :
  • late 14c., nerf "sinew, tendon," from Old French nerf and directly from Medieval Latin nervus "nerve," from Latin nervus "sinew, tendon; cord, bowstring," metathesis of pre-Latin *neuros, from PIE *(s)neu- "tendon, sinew" (cf. Sanskrit snavan- "band, sinew," Armenian neard "sinew," Greek neuron "sinew, tendon," in Galen "nerve"). Sense of "fibers that convey impulses between the brain and the body" is from c.1600.
  • Secondary senses developed from meaning "strength, vigor, energy" (c.1600), from the "sinew" sense. Hence figurative sense of "feeling, courage," first attested c.1600; that of "courage, boldness" is from 1809; bad sense "impudence, cheek" is from 1887. Latin nervus also had a figurative sense of "vigor, force, power, strength," as did Greek neuron. From the neurological sense come Nerves "condition of nervousness," attested from 1792; to get on someone's nerves, from 1895. War of nerves "psychological warfare" is from 1915.
  • noun daring, boldness
  • verb strengthen, hearten
Example sentences :
  • I wonder you got the nerve to sit there now with maybe ten men trailin' you to this cabin.
  • Extract from : « Way of the Lawless » by Max Brand
  • There he stood for a moment, and Andrew knew that he was gathering his nerve.
  • Extract from : « Way of the Lawless » by Max Brand
  • There aren't three men in the country with the nerve and the hand for it.
  • Extract from : « K » by Mary Roberts Rinehart
  • She had come through so much that every nerve was crying in passionate protest.
  • Extract from : « K » by Mary Roberts Rinehart
  • "Now stop this nerve strain and this foolishness," he said tersely.
  • Extract from : « Her Father's Daughter » by Gene Stratton-Porter
  • It is the signal "all is well," passed from one nerve cell to another.
  • Extract from : « The Call of the Twentieth Century » by David Starr Jordan
  • It was nearly all for Monny; but Monny must not know, lest she should lose her nerve when it was needed most.
  • Extract from : « It Happened in Egypt » by C. N. Williamson
  • He waited, every nerve and fibre of him tense for her answer.
  • Extract from : « The Fortune Hunter » by Louis Joseph Vance
  • "He's got nerve—I'll say that much for him," she observed aloud, and went on.
  • Extract from : « Good Indian » by B. M. Bower
  • You have supposed Mr Meagles and his family to strain every nerve, I think you said—'
  • Extract from : « Little Dorrit » by Charles Dickens

Synonyms for nerve

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019