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Definitions

ill (at ease)

ADJECTIVE
uncomfortable
Synonyms
WEAK
anxious awkward discomfited disquieted disturbed doubtful edgy faltering fidgety hesitant nervous on edge on tenterhooks restless self-conscious suspicious tense uneasy unrelaxed unsettled unsure
Antonyms
WEAK
at ease comfortable
ill at ease
ADJECTIVE
not feeling at ease
Synonyms
WEAK
anxious apprehensive awkward discomfited disquieted disturbed doubtful edgy faltering fidgety hesitant insecure nervous on edge on pins and needles on tenterhooks out of place restless self-conscious shy suspicious tense uncomfortable uneasy unrelaxed unsettled unsure
Antonyms
WEAK
at ease comfortable content

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Both feel socially ill at ease up against “the townspeople of Pennacook,” another refrain.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 7, 2025

We both had high hopes for our lives in Basel but felt ill at ease once we arrived.

From New York Times • Jan. 17, 2024

A gentle, modest individual, he was ill at ease at being thrust on to the international limelight.

From BBC • Sep. 11, 2023

To his moral credit, Levy often seems as ill at ease with luxury as with the prospect of a night walk through the rainforest or getting into a helicopter.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 23, 2023

The captain had only to look at him to see that the white knight was ill at ease.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin