alarm
Americannoun
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a sudden fear or distressing suspense caused by an awareness of danger; apprehension; fright.
- Synonyms:
- panic, terror, consternation
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any sound, outcry, or information intended to warn of approaching danger.
Paul Revere raced through the countryside raising the alarm that the British were coming.
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an automatic device that serves to call attention, to rouse from sleep, or to warn of fire, smoke, an intruder, etc.
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a warning sound; signal for attention.
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Animal Behavior. any sound, outcry, chemical discharge, action, or other signal that functions to draw attention to a potential predator.
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Fencing. an appeal or a challenge made by a step or stamp on the ground with the advancing foot.
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Archaic. a call to arms.
verb (used with object)
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to make fearful or apprehensive; distress.
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to warn of danger; rouse to vigilance and swift measures for safety.
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to fit or equip with an alarm or alarms, as for fire, smoke, or robbery.
to alarm one's house and garage.
verb
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to fill with apprehension, anxiety, or fear
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to warn about danger; alert
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to fit or activate a burglar alarm on a house, car, etc
noun
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fear or terror aroused by awareness of danger; fright
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apprehension or uneasiness
the idea of failing filled him with alarm
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a noise, signal, etc, warning of danger
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any device that transmits such a warning
a burglar alarm
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the device in an alarm clock that triggers off the bell or buzzer
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short for alarm clock
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archaic a call to arms
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fencing a warning or challenge made by stamping the front foot
Usage
What does alarm mean? Alarm is a sudden feeling of fear or suspense caused by an awareness of danger, as in The pirates boarding the ship filled the captain with alarm.An alarm is any sound or cry that is meant to alert someone. It can also be the device that produces the alarm, such as an alarm clock. Sounding the alarm means to activate a siren, bell, or a repeated verbal call, usually projected from a speaker of some kind.To alarm someone is to make them fearful or distressed, as in My parents alarmed me when they started talking about moving south.To alarm also means to warn someone about danger.Example: Not to alarm you, but I feel like I might need to go to the emergency room.
Related Words
Other Word Forms
- alarmable adjective
- alarmedly adverb
- alarming adjective
- alarmingly adverb
- prealarm verb (used with object)
- unalarmed adjective
Etymology
Origin of alarm
1350–1400; Middle English alarme, alarom < Middle French < Old Italian allarme, noun from phrase all'arme to (the) arms. See arm 2
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.
Ministers walk a tightrope of preparing for various scenarios, updating us on what they are doing or willing to do and hoping they don't induce any sense of panic or alarm.
From BBC
When investigators looked inside the home, they found that it did not have working smoke alarms and the main exit was partially blocked by dog crates and other items, according to the document.
From Los Angeles Times
The International Committee of the Red Cross says civilians are paying an "alarming" price for the war.
From BBC
The two trains had run on the same track for more than 10 minutes without triggering an alarm.
From Barron's
The escalating rhetoric set off alarm bells across the Middle East, with oil-exporting Gulf countries saying that Iranian reprisals could further endanger the world economy.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
