fear
noun
a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid.
fear
1 American
[feer]
/ fɪər /
noun
-
fears
plural
-
a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid.
- Synonyms:
- qualm, trepidation, horror, panic, fright, terror, dread, dismay, consternation, apprehension, foreboding
- Antonyms:
- intrepidity, calm, security, courage
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a specific instance of or propensity for such a feeling.
an abnormal fear of heights.
- Antonyms:
- predilection, penchant, fondness, liking
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concern or anxiety; solicitude.
a fear for someone's safety.
-
reverential awe, especially toward God.
the fear of God.
- Synonyms:
- veneration, reverence, respect, awe
-
something that causes feelings of dread or apprehension; something a person is afraid of.
Cancer is a common fear.
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anticipation of the possibility that something unpleasant will occur.
Having grown up during the Great Depression, he had a constant fear of running out of money.
verb (used with object)
-
fears,
present (3rd person singular)
-
feared,
past participle, past
-
fearing
present participle
-
to regard with fear; be afraid of.
-
to have reverential awe of.
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to consider or anticipate (something unpleasant) with a feeling of dread or alarm.
It's about to snow again, I fear.
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Archaic. to experience fear in (oneself).
I fear me he will ne'er forgive us.
verb (used without object)
-
fears,
present (3rd person singular)
-
feared,
past participle, past
-
fearing
present participle
-
to have fear; be afraid.
I'll go with you, so do not fear!
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to feel apprehensive or uneasy (usually followed byfor ).
In this time of economic instability, I fear for my children's future.
idioms
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for fear of / that, in order to prevent or avoid the risk of.
She is afraid to say anything for fear of the consequences.
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put the fear of God in / into, to cause to be greatly afraid.
Fear
2
American
[feer]
/ fɪər /
noun
-
a river in SE North Carolina. 202 miles (325 km) long.
-
Cape, a cape at its mouth.
fear
British
/ fɪə /
noun
-
a feeling of distress, apprehension, or alarm caused by impending danger, pain, etc
-
a cause of this feeling
-
awe; reverence
fear of God
-
concern; anxiety
-
possibility; chance
there is no fear of that happening
-
to forestall or avoid
-
certainly not
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to frighten
verb
-
to be afraid (to do something) or of (a person or thing); dread
-
(tr) to revere; respect
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(tr; takes a clause as object) to be sorry: used to lessen the effect of an unpleasant statement
I fear that you have not won
-
to feel anxiety about something
-
an archaic word for frighten
fear
More Idioms
Synonym Usage
Fear, alarm, dread all imply a painful emotion experienced when one is confronted by threatening danger or evil. Alarm implies an agitation of the feelings caused by awakening to imminent danger; it names a feeling of fright or panic: He started up in alarm. Fear and dread usually refer more to a condition or state than to an event. Fear is often applied to an attitude toward something, which, when experienced, will cause the sensation of fright: fear of falling. Dread suggests anticipation of something, usually a particular event, which, when experienced, will be disagreeable rather than frightening: She lives in dread of losing her money. The same is often true of fear, when used in a negative statement: She has no fear of losing her money.
Pop Culture
— Fear and Trembling: A philosophical exploration of faith and ethics by Sören Kierkegaard. Published in 1843 under the pseudonym Johannes de Silentio. — Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream: A roman à clef by gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, illustrated by Ralph Steadman. First printed in 1971 as a two-part series in Rolling Stone magazine, and as a novel in 1972. — Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A film adaptation of the Hunter S. Thompson book, directed by Terry Gilliam. Released in 1998. — The Culture of Fear: Why Americans Are Afraid of the Wrong Things: 1999 book by sociologist Barry Glassner, examining why Americans' fears are misplaced and exaggerated. Revised and updated in 2010. — Fear Factor: An American reality game show (2001–2006) in which contestants had to complete a series of dangerous, disgusting, or otherwise fear-inducing stunts. —No FEAR Act: The Notification and Federal Employee Antidiscrimination and Retaliation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–174). The act, signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2002, increases Federal agency accountability for acts of discrimination or reprisal against employees.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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fearernoun
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fearlessnessnoun
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fearlessadjective
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self-fearingadjective
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unfearingadjective
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fearlesslyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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fearsimple
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fearssimple
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have fearedperfect
-
has fearedperfect
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am fearingprogressive
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are fearingprogressive
-
is fearingprogressive
-
have been fearingperfect progressive
-
has been fearingperfect progressive
Past
-
fearedsimple
-
had fearedperfect
-
was fearingprogressive
-
were fearingprogressive
-
had been fearingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of fear
First recorded before 900; Middle English fere, Old English fær “sudden attack or danger”; cognate with Old Saxon fār “ambush,” Dutch gevaar, German Gefahr “danger,” Old Norse fār “disaster”
Explanation
Does the sight of a snake fill you with panic and the desire to run away as quickly as possible? If so, you have a fear of snakes. People have fear for many things: bugs, guns, heights, etc. Horror movies try to fill the audience with fear. Some fears make more sense than others. The fear of jumping out of planes makes a lot of sense, but the fear of public speaking isn't as logical: it won't kill you. Fear includes anxiety and can be very emotionally painful. If you're scared of anything, you know what fear is all about.
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.
See Examples For:
Health, nutrition and family engagement have long been core values and some fear that without guardrails the program will falter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
Stocks are falling and fear is rising as Wednesday’s global bond selloff shows no sign of stopping.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
The novel tells the story of a teacher who flees gang violence in Haiti and his adventures before he finally makes it to Canada, where he re-discovers "the right to breathe without fear".
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had where someone says, “Even mentioning this can stir up fear and doubt.”
From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026
With a clarity born of fear, he took in every detail.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
Fear on both sides can create a distance and lack of understanding, he warned, with longer absences making it much more likely a worker will drop out of the labour force altogether.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Fear is exactly what was struck in some Malibu residents since early Tuesday, when the sinkhole opened up in front of a beachside property owned by actor Nicolas Cage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
Forget FOMO: Fear of financial regret is keeping younger Americans at home on Saturday night.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
Fear that Social Security benefits might be reduced is not, by itself, an empirical reason to claim benefits early, although it is certainly a valid theory.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
Fear was like a cloud itself, threatening to suffocate him.
From "Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story" by Nora Raleigh Baskin
While more Americans than ever use AI, opposition to the technology is mounting due to environmental concerns, unemployment fears and warnings about the end of the world.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
Although the encounter itself was terrifying, revelations about Shrine’s past have compounded her fears.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
They added that fears around a Japanese-driven carry trade unwind are overblown.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
Others told us of fears that their land would be taken and they would no longer be able to farm for a living.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
Stuart Symington, the secretary of the Air Force, articulated Americans' fears in their starkest terms.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
There is no sentient actor lurking in the weights to be reasoned with, feared or pacified.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
Stocks have also weathered the rise in rates better than many had feared, with corporate profits holding up and the AI trade intact.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
Francisco Rodriguez, 78, said his home had already gone without power for 28 hours on Friday and feared he would not have light "for several days".
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
Isaiah’s sister and aunt testified that the defendants purposely kept Isaiah out of public view because they feared what might happen if someone discovered his condition.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
Suddenly the market feared that Capital One wasn’t actually smarter than everyone else in their industry about making loans but simply better at hiding their losses.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
They express confidence in public while perhaps fearing in private that a worst-case scenario could make it hopeless to try to save everyone.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026
The challenge isn’t to choose between embracing AI blindly and fearing it reflexively.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
It also has been helping to expand the U.S. economy, and so far there isn’t evidence that it’s causing the widespread unemployment that many economists have been fearing.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
It says out-of-control AI will lead to the apocalypse, with the dire warning coming from an Anthropic researcher, Jacob Coxon, who quit the company fearing the tech arms race is moving too quickly.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
They waded through thick drying grass to get to it and Olanna looked around, half fearing she would see Mama’s skeleton lying somewhere.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
