fright
[frahyt]
- sudden and extreme fear; a sudden terror.
- a person or thing of shocking, grotesque, or ridiculous appearance.
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- to frighten.
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Origin of fright
before 900; Middle English; Old English frytu, fyrhto; akin to German Furcht
Synonyms
See more synonyms for fright on Thesaurus.com1. dismay, consternation, alarm. See terror.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for fright
Contemporary Examples
Finally he grabs that blanket [and] I counted eight on one double mattress, eight children held together—dying of fright.
Take this sentence: "With the snake in sight, the horse reeled his paws in fright."
Kate got a fright when she thought she'd mislaid a family engagement ring that Prince William gave her in 2010.
Actress Emily Montague recalls how she survived the big vampire attack in 'Fright Night.'
Nonetheless, they should question the perspective and intentions of those on the fright wing they find common cause with.
Historical Examples
In its fright, it had probably mistaken us for a band of buffalo.
The Exploring Expedition to the Rocky Mountains, Oregon and CaliforniaBrevet Col. J.C. Fremont
They said to my face that I was a beauty; at Mr. Jones's, they said I was a fright.
I shall get no sleep to-night and to-morrow look like a fright to pay for it—no!
The Bacillus of BeautyHarriet Stark
Now that she has reached the stage of fright, I have great fun with her.
The Bacillus of BeautyHarriet Stark
It is nothing but nervousness and fright at that horrible firing.
In the Midst of AlarmsRobert Barr
fright
- sudden intense fear or alarm
- a sudden alarming shock
- informal a horrifying, grotesque, or ludicrous person or thingshe looks a fright in that hat
- take fright to become frightened
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- a poetic word for frighten
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Word Origin
Old English fryhto; related to Gothic faurhtei, Old Frisian fruchte, Old High German forhta
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 fright
n.
Old English (Northumbrian) fryhto, metathesis of fyrhtu "fear, dread, trembling, horrible sight," from Proto-Germanic *furkhtaz "afraid" (cf. Old Saxon forhta, Old Frisian fruchte, Old High German forhta, German Furcht, Gothic faurhtei "fear"). Not etymologically related to the word fear, which superseded it 13c. as the principal word except in cases of sudden terror. For spelling evolution, see fight.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper