petrified

American  

[pe-truh-fahyd] / ˈpɛ trəˌfaɪd /

adjective

1. having been numbed or paralyzed with astonishment, horror, or other strong emotion.

   The victim arrived at the shelter petrified and penniless, lacking the documents needed to apply for aid.

2. having been turned to stone or a stony substance.

   Among the fossils found here are petrified skeletons of dinosaurs dating back 65 million years.

3. having been made rigid or inert; hardened.

   The 20-year-old snack cake—still in its original packaging—is quite petrified; it makes a pleasant thunking sound when I knock it against the desk.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of petrify.

Other Word Forms

• half-petrified adjective
• semipetrified adjective
• unpetrified adjective

Etymology

Origin of petrified

petrify ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Tello told ProPublica she was petrified and particularly worried for her younger siblings.

From Salon • Mar. 26, 2026

"We ran downstairs to the basement... from the 10th floor... we were petrified," he told AFP.

From Barron's • Mar. 2, 2026

He barely allows the petrified Boo to twitch, yet somehow, we catch a glimpse of the qualities Duvall the actor will go on to reveal: dangerous and vulnerable, mythic and man-sized, electrifyingly watchable.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 17, 2026

Then just 18 and heavily pregnant, Hazel described being "petrified" when she discovered what happened to her baby sister.

From BBC • Feb. 13, 2026

And that’s why small-town kids sometimes don’t know the truth about petrified wood.

From "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie