Typically a humorous word referring to 'stomach pain or queasiness¹', collywobbles also refers figuratively to 'intense anxiety or nervousness, especially with stomach queasiness'. The word comes from the fanciful formation of colic + wobble, and in its figurative usage can be equated² to the more common butterflies in the stomach, belly³. Referring to 'a fluttering and nauseated⁴ sensation felt in the stomach when one is nervous', the phrase is often clipped to just 'the butterflies'.

 

Collywobbles一般是“腹痛或恶心”的戏虐说法，有时也喻指“因为极度紧张或焦虑而伴随的腹部不适”，也就是我们通常说的“紧张得肚子疼”。这个词是由colic（腹部绞痛）和wobble（摇摆）组合而成，这样的结合也是够炫目了。其实，这个词的比喻说法就相当于我们更熟悉的那个英文表达butterflies in the stomach/belly，胃里/肚子里有很多蝴蝶，也就是紧张得发抖，忐忑不安的意思。