anxiously

the word 'anxiously' is built upon the latin adjective anxius, meaning troubled or distressed in mind. this latin term is itself derived from the verb angere, meaning to choke or cause distress, which traces back to the proto-indo-european root angh-, conveying tightness or constriction. the english word retains this core sense of mental constriction. the suffix -ous was added to form the adjective 'anxious', meaning full of distress or worry, and the adverbial suffix -ly was later appended to create the form describing the manner of that state.

Structure: anxi (distressed) + ous (adjective suffix) + ly (adverb suffix) anxi (from latin anxius, meaning troubled, distressed); ous (a suffix forming adjectives, from latin -osus, meaning full of); ly (a suffix forming adverbs from adjectives, from old english -lice, meaning having the quality of)