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

Other Word Forms

• frightenable adjective
• frightener noun
• frighteningly adverb
• nonfrightening adjective
• nonfrighteningly adverb
• overfrighten verb
• unfrightening adjective
• frightening adjective
• frightened 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

Food becomes a visual shorthand for connection, a way of grounding an immortal creature to the earth and to the fragile, frightened humans who move through it.

Read more on Salon

Officers said the woman did not require hospital treatment but was left "extremely frightened".

Read more on BBC

Aggie wants his dogs to not run over and frighten her little, not scary dog; he wants her to join her neighbors in giving him an easement to build a jogging path behind their houses.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But where “The Monkey’s” snide sense of humor about its kills quickly grew smug, this time Perkins’ light touch — even during the most frightening moments — gives this slight film just the right proportionality.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

While it depends on the circumstances, the most traumatic part can be exposure to “frightening events.”

Read more on Salon

Related Words

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