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Meaning of restless in English

restless
adjective
uk
/ˈrest.ləs/ us
/ˈrest.ləs/
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C1
unwilling or unable to stay still or to be quiet and calm, because you are worried or bored:
He's a restless type - he never stays in one country for long.
She spent a restless night (= she did not sleep well), tossing and turning.
Synonym
restive formal
Compare
restful
Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples
unhappy because nothing is interesting
  • boredI’m so bored right now, I might as well just go to bed.
  • bored stiffWe were bored stiff at Nan’s house.
  • bored out of your mindI am bored out of my mind - give me a project to work on!
  • be tired ofI'm tired of all her complaining.
  • weary ofBoth countries are very weary of the conflict and wish for peace.
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SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Anxious and worried
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Related words

restlessly
restlessness
(Definition of restless from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

restless | American Dictionary

restless
adjective
us
/ˈrest·ləs/
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moving because you are unable to relax, esp. because you are worried or bored, or (of an activity) having a lot of movement as a characteristic:
He dozed off to a restless sleep.
The audience began to get restless.
Restless can also mean not satisfied with your situation and wanting a change:
The opposition parties provide no clear alternative for restless voters.

restlessly

adverb us
/ˈrest·ləs·li/
I wandered restlessly around the apartment.

restlessness

noun [ U ] us
/ˈrest·ləs·nəs/
He paced back and forth out of sheer restlessness.
(Definition of restless from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of restless

restless
Growing ever more restless, dashing back and forth, the child waits for a possible chance to get hold of the cart.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The synthesised bass is extremely restless, moving mostly by tritone and half-step, and traversing the chromatic aggregate save for one pitch.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Older children may be restless and fidgety, but not overly hyperactive.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
He is always restless, and reels with a natural intoxication.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The deconstructed heart is ever restless, yet the theological virtues stand only as perpetual temptations to rest in inauthenticity.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In 1743, as the city quickly grew restless from a wave of soaring prices, grumbling voices were heard everywhere.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
He made eye contact with his wife and his restless movements diminished.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
We are awash in restless evangelicals, profligate of stern and apocalyptic advice.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Perhaps the restless quest to rediscover age-old communities is an integral element of the rootless experience of modernity.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The opening elegy, starting from restless repetition of a single pitch, opens out to a refined, rich design.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These were not merely new urban proletariat but also newly dispersed and restless peoples on the forest periphery.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Five months after administration of amoxapine, she suddenly became restless and moved her arms and upper part of the body back and forth.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
On admission, he was tachypneic and restless, weighing 5100 g (10th centile).
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The great wars and their atrocities had receded from memory, and want of war now gave way to restless navel-gazing.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
What is nearness if it is even repelled by the restless abolition of distances?
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
What is the pronunciation of restless?
 

Translations of restless

in Chinese (Traditional)
呆不住的, 坐立不安的，焦躁的…
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in Chinese (Simplified)
呆不住的, 坐立不安的，焦躁的…
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in Spanish
inquieto, inquieto/ta [masculine-feminine, singular]…
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in Portuguese
irrequieto, inquieto/-ta, impaciente…
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अस्वस्थ, बेचैन, अस्थिर…
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落ち着かない, そわそわした, そわそわする…
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huzursuz, sabırsız, rahatsız…
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agité/-ée, agité…
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inquiet…
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rusteloos, onrustig…
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நீங்கள் கவலைப்படுகிறீர்கள் அல்லது சலிப்படைகிறீர்கள் என்பதால், அசையாமல் இருக்கவோ அல்லது அமைதியாகவும் அமைதியாகவும் இருக்க விரும்பவில்லை அல்லது முடியவில்லை…
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(चिंता या बोरियत के कारण) व्याकुल, अधीर चंचल…
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ચંચળ, અજંપો…
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rastløs, hvileløs…
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rastlös, orolig…
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sentiasa, tanpa tidur…
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ruhelos, schlaflos…
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rastløs, urolig, søvnløs…
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بے قرار, بے تاب, مضطرب…
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невгамовний, тривожний, неспокійний…
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కుదురుగా ఉండలేని / మీరు ఆందోళన చెందుతున్నందువల్ల లేదా విసుగు చెందుతున్నందువల్ల నిశ్శబ్దంగా ప్రశాంతంగా ఉండలేరు ఉండడానికి ఇష్టపడరు.…
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অস্থির, চঞ্চল প্রকৃতি…
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neklidný, netrpělivý, bezesný…
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gelisah, penuh kegelisahan…
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กระสับกระส่าย, ไม่ได้พักผ่อน…
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không nghỉ, lo lắng, thức trắng…
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niespokojny, nerwowy, znudzony…
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가만히 있지 못하는…
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inquieto, irrequieto, insomme…
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