fearful

[feer-fuh l]

See more synonyms for fearful on Thesaurus.com

adjective

causing or apt to cause fear; frightening: a fearful apparition.
feeling fear, dread, apprehension, or solicitude: fearful for his life; fearful lest he commit suicide.
full of awe or reverence: fearful of the Lord.

showing or caused by fear: fearful behavior.
extreme in size, intensity, or badness: a fearful head cold; fearful poverty.

Origin of fearful

First recorded in 1300–50, fearful is from the Middle English word ferful. See fear, -ful

Related formsfear·ful·ly, adverbfear·ful·ness, nouno·ver·fear·ful, adjectiveo·ver·fear·ful·ly, adverbo·ver·fear·ful·ness, nounpre·fear·ful, adjectivepre·fear·ful·ly, adverbun·fear·ful, adjectiveun·fear·ful·ly, adverbun·fear·ful·ness, noun

Can be confusedfearful fearsome

Synonyms

See more synonyms for fearful on Thesaurus.com

2. afraid, timid, timorous, apprehensive, uneasy, distrustful; solicitous, anxious, concerned, worried.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for fearful

Contemporary Examples

This past election, they were hardly mentioned by Republicans fearful of alienating moderates.
It Gets Better—but Mostly if You Live in a Rich, Democratic Country
Jay Michaelson
November 11, 2014
Oddly, though, Americans are not fearful enough when it comes to real threats.
Ebola, ISIS, the Border: So Much to Fear, So Little Time!
Gene Robinson
November 2, 2014
At first, the doctors write, the villagers were “fearful and agitated,” lacking the basic necessities needed to survive.
1976 Vs. Today: Ebola’s Terrifying Evolution
Abby Haglage
September 10, 2014
How can we speak to their fears in a way that gets them to understand that there is nothing to be fearful of?
Even After Hobby Lobby, the Religious Right is Still Terrified
Gene Robinson
July 6, 2014
McCarthy, fearful that Lou might fall, had whispered to Dahlgren, “Catch him if he starts to go down.”
The Stacks: The Day Lou Gehrig Delivered Baseball’s Gettysburg Address
Ray Robinson
July 4, 2014

Historical Examples

Has this fearful pestilence no power to restrain the appetites and passions of the people?
Philothea
Lydia Maria Child
Though the cove was more quiet than the ocean, yet it was fearful enough, even there.
Malbone
Thomas Wentworth Higginson
That fearful alley was no place for human beings; certainly not for these two.
Ester Ried Yet Speaking
Isabella Alden
The sympathy of it stirred the listener to fearful memories.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
Your da's death was a fearful blow to her, and she never overed it.
The Foolish Lovers
St. John G. Ervine

British Dictionary definitions for fearful

fearful

adjective

having fear; afraid
causing fear; frightening
informal very unpleasant or annoyinga fearful cold

Derived Formsfearfulness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for fearful

adj.

mid-14c., "causing fear," from fear + -ful. Meaning "full of fear, timid" (now less common) also is from mid-14c. As a mere emphatic, from 1630s. Related: Fearfully; fearfulness.

fearful

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}fearful

Synonyms

Examples from the Web for fearful

Contemporary Examples

This past election, they were hardly mentioned by Republicans fearful of alienating moderates.

Oddly, though, Americans are not fearful enough when it comes to real threats.

At first, the doctors write, the villagers were “fearful and agitated,” lacking the basic necessities needed to survive.

How can we speak to their fears in a way that gets them to understand that there is nothing to be fearful of?

McCarthy, fearful that Lou might fall, had whispered to Dahlgren, “Catch him if he starts to go down.”

Historical Examples

Has this fearful pestilence no power to restrain the appetites and passions of the people?

Though the cove was more quiet than the ocean, yet it was fearful enough, even there.

That fearful alley was no place for human beings; certainly not for these two.

The sympathy of it stirred the listener to fearful memories.

Your da's death was a fearful blow to her, and she never overed it.

fearful

Word Origin and History for fearful

adj.

Origin of fearful