alarm

American  

[uh-lahrm] / əˈlɑrm /

noun

• alarms
  plural

1. a sudden fear or distressing suspense caused by an awareness of danger; apprehension; fright.

   Synonyms:

   panic, terror, consternation

2. 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.

3. an automatic device that serves to call attention, to rouse from sleep, or to warn of fire, smoke, an intruder, etc.

4. a warning sound; signal for attention.

5. Animal Behavior. any sound, outcry, chemical discharge, action, or other signal that functions to draw attention to a potential predator.

6. Fencing. an appeal or a challenge made by a step or stamp on the ground with the advancing foot.

7. Archaic. a call to arms.

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verb (used with object)

• alarms,
  present (3rd person singular)
• alarmed,
  past participle,  past
• alarming
  present participle

1. to make fearful or apprehensive; distress.

2. to warn of danger; rouse to vigilance and swift measures for safety.

3. to fit or equip with an alarm or alarms, as for fire, smoke, or robbery.

   to alarm one's house and garage.

alarm British  

/ əˈlɑːm /

verb

1. to fill with apprehension, anxiety, or fear

2. to warn about danger; alert

3. to fit or activate a burglar alarm on a house, car, etc

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noun

1. fear or terror aroused by awareness of danger; fright

2. apprehension or uneasiness

   the idea of failing filled him with alarm

3. a noise, signal, etc, warning of danger

4. any device that transmits such a warning

   a burglar alarm

5. 1. the device in an alarm clock that triggers off the bell or buzzer

   2. short for alarm clock

6. archaic a call to arms

7. fencing a warning or challenge made by stamping the front foot

alarm Idioms  

1. see false alarm.

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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.

Synonym Usage

See fear. See frighten.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prealarm
  verb (used with object)
• alarmable
  adjective
• alarming
  adjective
• unalarmed
  adjective
• alarmedly
  adverb
• alarmingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• alarms
  plural

Participles

• alarming
  present
• alarmed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• alarm
  simple
• alarms
  simple
• have alarmed
  perfect
• has alarmed
  perfect
• am alarming
  progressive
• are alarming
  progressive
• is alarming
  progressive
• have been alarming
  perfect progressive
• has been alarming
  perfect progressive

Past

• alarmed
  simple
• had alarmed
  perfect
• was alarming
  progressive
• were alarming
  progressive
• had been alarming
  perfect progressive

Future

• will alarm
  simple
• will have alarmed
  perfect
• will be alarming
  progressive
• will have been alarming
  perfect progressive

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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

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Explanation

On a clock, the alarm can be set to go off at a certain time to wake nearby sleepers. You should always check the alarm on the clock at a hotel because a previous guest may have it set to go off in the middle of the night. The noun alarm refers to a signal that is meant to rouse, alert, or awaken someone. On April 18, 1775, William Dawes, Paul Revere, and several others rode from Boston to Lexington, Massachusetts to raise the alarm that the British were coming. As a verb, alarm means to be filled with anxiety or apprehension. You may become alarmed if your children become too quiet. Never a good sign — they are probably up to something mischievous.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

alarm alarms alarmed alarming

I was three hours away from home and our burglar alarm had gone off late the night before.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 14, 2026

Some insiders say Chinese AI is not yet sophisticated enough to spark alarm over going rogue.

From Barron's ● Nov. 14, 2026

I didn’t know much at that point—only that it was the backdoor sensor that triggered the alarm.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 14, 2026

“For years, the FBI has been sounding the alarm regarding China’s ambitious efforts to gain technological, economic and geopolitical superiority,” said former Assistant Chief Horace Frank of the Los Angeles Police Department, who oversaw intelligence.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 12, 2026

At Volk Field in Wisconsin the wrong alarm sounded.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

Sanchez said the photo of the student, which circulated online, didn’t raise alarms because California law allows voters to authorize another person to return their completed ballots.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2026

If I lose contact again with the team, we have to keep it within the team because I do know that that hit alarms and a lot of people were stressed and panicked.

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

Meanwhile, Eurozone wages are not rising at a rate that would trigger inflation alarms, European Central Bank Chief Economist Philip Lane said Thursday.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

"What happened should not be used to generate alarms and disorder," he said, adding that he had called for a report on the damage.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

The station manager quickly tapped her computer, and the alarms went quiet.

From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown

Gulf states are growing alarmed that they may face more destructive Iranian attacks than at the height of the war in March.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

Iran was also hitting smaller buildings, one sign of the precision that has increasingly alarmed U.S. officials.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026

Col Watson said: "The built-in alarm would have alarmed because the rear doors were open, and had that gone off the driver would have almost certainly stopped."

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

The Foreign Press Association, which represents international media covering Israel and the Palestinian territories, said it was "deeply alarmed" by false media reports about Bader.

From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026

Now that the Manager had gone, I was not particularly alarmed.

From "The Witches" by Roald Dahl

On United's side, they will have noted Fernandes' alarming drop-off from the levels he hit last season, when he broke the Premier League assists record and won all the major player of the year honours.

From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2026

Sheeppox is highly contagious and can spread through a flock with alarming speed.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 11, 2026

Zainab Johnson believes in optimism — to a somewhat alarming degree.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

The July strikes marked an alarming shift in Iran’s tactics and revealed an improvement in the regime’s ability to sequence attacks and hit targets with precision.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026

But they failed a few seconds later, and the Vonnegut’s hull suffered an alarming amount of damage in the handful of seconds it took me to make the jump to light speed.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

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Related Words

• anxiety
• apprehension
• consternation
• dismay
• dread
• horror
• nervousness
• panic
• scare
• tension
• terror
• trepidation
• unease
• uneasiness

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