frighten

[ frahyt-n ]

verb (used with object)

1. to make afraid or fearful; throw into a fright; terrify; scare.

   Synonyms: intimidate, dismay, startle, shock

2. to drive (usually followed by away, off, etc.) by scaring:

   to frighten away pigeons from the roof.

verb (used without object)

1. to become frightened:

   a timid child who frightens easily.

frighten

/ ˈfraɪtən /

verb

1. to cause fear in; terrify; scare
2. to drive or force to go (away, off, out, in, etc) by making afraid

Derived Forms

• ˈfrighteningly, adverb
• ˈfrightening, adjective
• ˈfrightened, adjective

Other Words From

• frighten·a·ble adjective
• frighten·er noun
• frighten·ing·ly adverb
• non·frighten·ing adjective
• non·frighten·ing·ly adverb
• over·frighten verb
• un·frighten·ing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of frighten¹

First recorded in 1660–70; fright + -en ¹

Idioms and Phrases

see scare out of one's wits .

Synonym Study

Frighten, alarm, scare, terrify, terrorize, appall all mean to arouse fear in people or animals. To frighten is to shock with sudden, startling, but usually short-lived fear, especially that arising from the apprehension of physical harm: to frighten someone by a sudden noise. To alarm is to arouse the feelings through the realization of some imminent or unexpected danger: to alarm someone by a scream. To scare is to frighten, often without the presence of real danger: Horror movies really scare me. To terrify is to strike with violent, overwhelming, or paralyzing fear: to terrify a city by lawless acts. To terrorize is to terrify in a general, continued, systematic manner, either wantonly or in order to gain control: His marauding armies terrorized the countryside. To appall is to overcome or confound by dread, dismay, shock, or horror: The suffering caused by the earthquake appalled him.

Example Sentences

“The situation is frightening,” said Farhat, a Syrian hotel owner in the occupied Golan Heights.

From BBC

Consider all of that a frightening vision of our now all-too-imminent future: a president freed from the restraints of the Constitution, unchecked by Congress or the courts — or by his Cabinet advisers.

From Salon

"But Callum said 'dad, I'm not frightened of bullies and what's going on in Ukraine is awful and someone needs to stand up for these people'."

From BBC

It is now necessary to revise the movement to fight "a frightening expansion of the far-right across Europe," said Clive Dixon, from Coventry LMHR.

From BBC

"I remember going down to a gathering of all the Women's Institutes in Cornwall,” June recalled, “and I was mobbed. It was quite frightening."

From BBC

Related Words

• agitate
• alarm
• astound
• awe
• daunt
• demoralize
• deter
• disconcert
• discourage
• dishearten
• dismay
• faze
• horrify
• intimidate
• perturb
• petrify
• startle
• terrify
• terrorize
• unnerve