nervous Nellie Hear it!

nervous Nellie definition

☆ nervous Nellie

Slang a timid person who is easily upset and is hesitant to act

Etymology: orig. used of high-strung racehorses: in ref. to old Nell, jocular name for a nag

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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