high-strung

comparative higher-strung · superlative highest-strung

1. idiomaticinformalNervous; anxious; excited or excitable.

   But it exasperated the higher strung nature of Colonel Feraud

   1908, Joseph Conrad, The Duel, A Military Tale, page 62

   3 more examples

   "Why, you're shakin' all over!" "I suppose I wouldn't be a medium if I wasn't high strung."

   1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019

   I probably would have gone with a spaniel rather than a setter. Especially since they listed the Irish Setter - arguably the highest-strung of the bunch.

   2003 October 21, queenmother, “Recommended Dog Breeds”, in rec.pets.dogs.breeds (Usenet)

   My mother, always described in our family as high-strung, was acting higher-strung than I ever remembered her.

   2010, Paula Butturini, Keeping the Feast, One Couple's Story of Love, Food, and Healing, page 69

2. entertainmentHaving lighter, thinner strings than usual, to produce higher notes.

   a high-strung guitar