nerves

Everyday

1. Nerves are thin fibres in your body that carry messages between your brain and other parts of your body, so you can feel and move. tree →
2. Nerves (informal) means the worried, nervous feeling you get before something important, like a test or a show. tree →
3. Nerves can mean courage to stay calm in a hard moment, as in «nerves of steel». tree →

In the lessons

In science, the nervous system is made of the brain, the spinal cord and nerves; nerves carry signals for touch, pain, heat and movement — that is how you quickly pull your hand away from something hot. In feelings lessons, having nerves (butterflies in your tummy) before a performance or test is normal, and deep breathing helps. Phrases: «a bag of nerves», «get on someone's nerves» (annoy them), «nerves of steel», «first-night nerves», «calm your nerves», «lose your nerve».

Examples

• Nerves carry messages from your skin to your brain. tree →
• The spinal cord is a bundle of nerves. tree →
• I always get nerves before a test. tree →
• Deep breaths help calm your nerves. tree →
• His loud chewing gets on my nerves. tree →
• The goalkeeper had nerves of steel. tree →
• She was a bag of nerves before the concert. tree →
• When you touch something hot, your nerves send a signal very fast. tree →

Note

Plural of «nerve». Adjective: nervous. «Have the nerve to» can mean be brave, or be rude and cheeky. «Get on my nerves» means annoy me, not hurt my real nerves.