dread
Americanverb (used with object)
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to fear greatly; be in extreme apprehension of.
to dread death.
- Antonyms:
- welcome
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to be reluctant to do, meet, or experience.
I dread going to big parties.
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Archaic. to hold in respectful awe.
verb (used without object)
noun
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terror or apprehension as to something in the future; great fear.
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a person or thing dreaded.
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Informal. dreads, dreadlocks.
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Informal. a person who wears dreadlocks.
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Archaic. deep awe or reverence.
verb
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to anticipate with apprehension or terror
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to fear greatly
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archaic to be in awe of
noun
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great fear; horror
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an object of terror
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slang a Rastafarian
-
archaic deep reverence
adjective
Related Words
See fear.
Other Word Forms
- dreadable adjective
- dreadness noun
- predread noun
- undreaded adjective
- undreading adjective
Etymology
Origin of dread
First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English dreden (verb), Old English drǣdan, aphetic variant of adrǣdan, ondrǣdan; cognate with Old High German intrātan “to fear”
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.
News of a potentially weakening economy along with the inflationary threat of rising energy prices had investors on alert for stagflation, the dreaded pairing of slow growth and rising prices.
From Barron's
"I dread to think where the farm would have been financially had we not started to make those changes," he tells me.
From BBC
But I dread it because it means having to see Karly and Sal, too, smirking and gossiping and sniggering at everyone behind their hands.
From Literature
It seemed we’d hardly slept when it was day, the day I dreaded.
From Literature
All of these factors contribute towards a situation which has now left many dreading the idea of going to A&E.
From BBC
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.
