verklempt

== English == === Etymology === Borrowed from Yiddish פֿאַרקלעמט (farklemt, “depressed, distraught; choked up”). The English spelling was influenced by the German prefix ver- corresponding to Yiddish פֿאַר־ (far-). German verklemmt (“uptight”, literally “jammed”) is formally cognate, but semantically unrelated; a closer match is beklommen (“anxious, despondent”). Popularized by a 1990s sketch comedy series. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /fəˈklɛm(p)t/, /və-/ (General American) IPA(key): /fɚˈklɛm(p)t/, /vɚ-/ Rhymes: -ɛmt Hyphenation: ver‧klempt === Adjective === verklempt (comparative more verklempt, superlative most verklempt) (US, colloquial) Overcome with emotion, choked up. (US, colloquial) Flustered, nervous, overwhelmed. Synonyms: see Thesaurus:nervous ==== Alternative forms ==== faclempt, faklempt, farklempt, ferklempt, verklemmt ==== Translations ==== === References ===