nerve
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /nɝv/
ipa: /nɜːv/
ipa: /nɜɪv/
ipa: /nɛɾv/
rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)v
Forms: form: nerves
form: nerving
form: nerved
form: nerved
Etymology: Recorded since circa 1374 as Middle English nerve, from Medieval Latin nervus (“nerve”), from Latin nervus (“sinew”). Doublet of neuron and sinew.
Verb sense 4 is chiefly a semantic loan from German nerven.
Senses: examples: text: May their example nerve us to face the enemy.
text: The yellow-bearded Mailey, the old warrior, scarred with many combats and eager for more, stood beside his wife, the gentle squire who bore his weapons and nerved his arm.
ref: 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:
text: And how I strained my ears, and nerved my hands and limbs, beginning to twitch with convulsive movements, which I feared might betray me!
ref: 1861, Elizabeth Gaskell, The Grey Woman:
synonyms: nerve up
glosses: To give courage.
examples: text: The liquor nerved up several of the men after their icy march.
text: The shock nerved her, and she ran aimlessly till she fell, and for a time lay, but making a barrier of her arms, that the child should not be crushed.
ref: 1907, Barbara Baynton, edited by Sally Krimmer and Alan Lawson, Human Toll (Portable Australian Authors: Barbara Baynton), St Lucia: University of Queensland Press, published 1980, page 289:
synonyms: word: nerve up
word: anneal
word: brace
word: build up
word: confirm
word: enstrengthen
word: fortify
word: harden
word: intend
word: indurate
word: invigorate
word: munite
word: nerve
word: nerve up
word: reinforce
word: roborate
word: steel
word: strength
word: strengthen
word: thicken
glosses: To give strength; to supply energy or vigour.
examples: text: She has been trying everything (wedge pads, bar shoes, etc.) and he is still dead lame. Someone has suggested nerving him, which (I believe - correct me if I am wrong!) involves cutting the main nerve in his foot so he can be ridden without pain.
ref: 1993 January 8, Penny E. Breyer, “Net wisdom needed on nerving”, in rec.equestrian (Usenet), archived from the original on 21 Aug 2025:
text: You can't nerve a hoof and I didn't realize that the cannon bone where the nerving takes place is not part of the leg.
ref: 1999 June 18, CJ, “Advice for horse that keeps mouth open & runs through the bit?”, in rec.equestrian (Usenet), archived from the original on 21 Aug 2025:
text: Her instructor was trying to convince me that her horse's tail "needed" to be nerved.
ref: 2002 March 24, lpgirl, “nerving tails”, in rec.equestrian (Usenet), archived from the original on 21 Aug 2025:
glosses: To perform a neurectomy on (someone or something).
examples: text: I guess, my previous message never came in the net..so again: (hope, i don't nerve anyone) We want to combine different LAN's via fiberoptic cable (Monomode) to the Internet.
ref: 1996 July 1, Tuennes, “FDDI or Ethernet or what?”, in comp.dcom.lans.ethernet (Usenet), archived from the original on 21 Aug 2025:
text: No way was I assured, but after that the doctor refused to answer anymore questions. Instead, he wouldn’t stop nerving me to give him a guided tour of the berserker.
ref: 2024, Michael Kobzan, “Return to The Berserker”, in John Dunley, →ISBN:
text: Do not nerve others: Of course it helps to talk to others. But just when you've got a lot of information, that can be annoying.
ref: 2025, Simone Janson, “Better Choice - 10 Tips: Properly informing instead of brooding!”, in Yes, No, Maybe? What to Do When You Don’t Know What You Want, Best of HR, →ISBN:
glosses: To get on (someone’s) nerves; to annoy, irritate, or bother (someone).
examples: text: Mathias slowly leads his hand down to the holster... yeah, cool steel... his fingers wrap around the grip of his Smith & Wesson's, dragging it out, aiming and... In other words: Stop nerving, damiac14!
ref: 1997 May 8, Mathias Schiffer, “Damiac14's Page Updated, and improved!”, in comp.lang.basic.visual.misc (Usenet), archived from the original on 21 Aug 2025:
text: use the extrapolar solution, don't nerve.
ref: 1998 December 24, TUTonNO, “REM Thieves?- a hint”, in alt.my.head.hurts (Usenet), archived from the original on 21 Aug 2025:
text: Speaking of Camden, I pulled off I-676 once to clean my windshield on the side of some surface street before turning around to shoot the Ben Franklin Bridge Westbound and I must say I was a bit nervous knowing the reputation, and I don't "nerve" easily.
ref: 2006 March 22, JimKG@aol.com, “Most dangerous place you have gone with a camera?”, in misc.transport.road (Usenet), archived from the original on 21 Aug 2025:
text: Broadband Quality :) Stop nerving!!!
ref: 2007 October 25, Daniel Mandic, “Update on Jack Tramiel at CHM - Dec. 10 !!!”, in comp.sys.amiga.misc (Usenet), archived from the original on 21 Aug 2025:
glosses: To be nervous.
Derived terms: nerve up