panic attack

American  

noun

Psychiatry.

• panic attacks
  plural

1. an intense attack of anxiety characterized by feelings of impending doom and trembling, sweating, pounding heart, and other physical symptoms.

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panic attack British  

noun

1. an episode of acute and disabling anxiety associated with such physical symptoms as hyperventilation and sweating See also panic disorder

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• panic attacks
  plural

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

panic attack

Just hours before representing Australia at the Paris 2024 opening ceremony, Rachael Gunn had a panic attack in the middle of the Olympic village.

From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026

I had a panic attack in that venue in North London when I was supporting Wu-Tang Clan.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026

On the main stage, May Habib, chief executive of an AI platform called Writer, told the audience that Fortune 500 bosses are having a "collective panic attack" on the subject.

From Barron's ● Apr. 12, 2026

Shear says he first began his original screenplay with an image of a young man having a panic attack in the self-help section of a bookshop and grew the script from there.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 2, 2026

I felt as if I was having a full-blown panic attack.

From "Courage to Soar" by Simone Biles

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