alarm
- a sudden fear or distressing suspense caused by an awareness of danger; apprehension; fright.
- 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.
- an automatic device that serves to call attention, to rouse from sleep, or to warn of fire, smoke, an intruder, etc.
- a warning sound; signal for attention.
- Animal Behavior. any sound, outcry, chemical discharge, action, or other signal that functions to draw attention to a potential predator.
- Fencing. an appeal or a challenge made by a step or stamp on the ground with the advancing foot.
- Archaic. a call to arms.
- to make fearful or apprehensive; distress.
- to warn of danger; rouse to vigilance and swift measures for safety.
- to fit or equip with an alarm or alarms, as for fire, smoke, or robbery: to alarm one's house and garage.
Origin of alarm
Synonyms for alarm
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comSynonym study
Related Words for alarm
nervousness, dismay, anxiety, consternation, tension, apprehension, horror, unease, trepidation, uneasiness, dread, terror, panic, scare, buzzer, signal, cry, alert, whistle, warningExamples from the Web for alarm
Contemporary Examples of alarm
Truth be told, there is no one better at capturing the agony and alarm of a woman in the throes of a nervous breakdown than Moore.
If the idea of a religious vigilante ambushing sex workers in his spare time sets off alarm bells, it probably should.
Brown was still sounding the alarm about one particular firm, Booz Allen Hamilton, when he was arrested on September 12, 2012.
To turn it down, would have set off alarm bells to her family.
But that the CNN-John King blunder even happened is a cause for alarm.
‘Newsroom’ Premiere: Aaron Sorkin Puts CNN on Blast Over the Boston BombingKevin Fallon
November 10, 2014
Historical Examples of alarm
"I'd rather keep it, if it's the same to you," said Paul, in alarm.
Brave and BoldHoratio Alger
She had begun to pull away in alarm when he seized her wrist.
The SpendersHarry Leon Wilson
But Mr. Paine assured her that letters were likely to be irregular, and there was no ground for alarm.
Brave and BoldHoratio Alger
"You alarm me, dear young friend," continued the good minister.
He turned and ran to the camp, shouting an alarm at the top of his voice.
The White CompanyArthur Conan Doyle
alarm
- to fill with apprehension, anxiety, or fear
- to warn about danger; alert
- to fit or activate a burglar alarm on a house, car, etc
- fear or terror aroused by awareness of danger; fright
- apprehension or uneasinessthe idea of failing filled him with alarm
- a noise, signal, etc, warning of danger
- any device that transmits such a warninga burglar alarm
- the device in an alarm clock that triggers off the bell or buzzer
- short for alarm clock
- archaic a call to arms
- fencing a warning or challenge made by stamping the front foot
Word Origin for alarm
Word Origin and History for alarm
early 14c., from Old French alarme (14c.), from Italian all'arme "to arms!" (literally "to the arms"). An interjection that came to be used as the word for the call or warning (cf. alert). Extended 16c. to "any sound to warn of danger or to arouse." Weakened sense of "apprehension, unease" is from 1833. Variant alarum is due to the rolling -r- in the vocalized form. Sometimes in early years anglicized as all-arm. Alarm clock is attested from 1690s (as A Larum clock).
Idioms and Phrases with alarm
alarm
see false alarm.