frighten
Americanverb (used with object)
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frightens,
present (3rd person singular)
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frightened,
past participle, past
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frightening
present participle
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to make afraid or fearful; throw into a fright; terrify; scare.
- Synonyms:
- intimidate, dismay, startle, shock
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to drive (usually followed by away, off, etc.) by scaring.
to frighten away pigeons from the roof.
verb (used without object)
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frightens,
present (3rd person singular)
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frightened,
past participle, past
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frightening
present participle
verb
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to cause fear in; terrify; scare
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to drive or force to go (away, off, out, in, etc) by making afraid
Synonym Usage
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.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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frightenernoun
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overfrightenverb
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frightenableadjective
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frightenedadjective
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frighteningadjective
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nonfrighteningadjective
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unfrighteningadjective
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frighteninglyadverb
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nonfrighteninglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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frightensimple
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frightenssimple
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have frightenedperfect
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has frightenedperfect
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am frighteningprogressive
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are frighteningprogressive
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is frighteningprogressive
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have been frighteningperfect progressive
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has been frighteningperfect progressive
Past
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frightenedsimple
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had frightenedperfect
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was frighteningprogressive
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were frighteningprogressive
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had been frighteningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of frighten
Explanation
To frighten is to make someone feel afraid. Your new look — pink hair, tattoos, and piercings — will probably frighten your grandparents. If horror movies and haunted houses frighten you, they scare you, and all it might take to frighten your skittish cat is the sound of the vacuum cleaner or coffee grinder. Frighten is the verb form of the noun fright. although originally the verb was also fright. The Old English source is fyrhtu, "fear, dread, trembling, or horrible sight."
Vocabulary lists containing frighten
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Terrify
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Terrify
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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:
Bamford, on the other hand, has made a career out of being so deeply in touch with her mind and self that it would frighten the average neurotypical viewer if it weren’t so damn funny.
From Salon ● Oct. 23, 2026
When we think about old age, few scenarios frighten us more than dementia.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
First used by Ottoman military "mehter" bands to frighten and demoralise the enemy, cymbals were a useful tool for an empire on the warpath.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Fireworks can frighten animals and send them scattering, but Jackie and Shadow’s eaglets apparently are made of sterner stuff.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026
It was funny, the notion that he could frighten her.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
What frightens Ms. Stern most isn’t simply that the AfD might become stronger.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
I have to admit your creativity frightens me a little.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
What frightens Atash Heil is the uncertainty of what an AI-dominated future might look like - and the speed of the transformation graduates have witnessed during their college years.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026
It frightens me how painfully ironic it feels to cover a film about my industry’s demise when it was “The Devil Wears Prada” that pointed me here in the first place.
From Salon ● May 1, 2026
"Tell us what frightens you so much," said Jojen.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
In the story’s climax, a frightened Ichabod encounters the terrible spirit on the way home from a party—or is it Brom, playing an elaborate prank?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026
Witnesses are frightened, and the police aren’t the only organisation trying to talk to them.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
Naomi, from Exeter, said she had been too frightened to leave.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
The mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, said that he had witnessed "smashed shop windows, looted stores, and frightened citizens".
From Barron's ● Oct. 18, 2026
Whatever Margaret had just seen had frightened her terribly!
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
The frightening truth is that I have no clear idea where I will go or what I will do when I can no longer care for myself.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026
The mother of a baby who fell ill on holiday and cannot get home has said "every day is frightening and uncertain".
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
Other Mommy promises to nurture Bela, but clearly she represents the worst type of matriarch imaginable: one who is frightening, controlling and dangerous.
From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026
Ocker’s “Chasing the Headless Horseman” pursues the origins and cultural legacy of a frightening figure who has a genesis closer to home.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026
“Now don’t you say anything else frightening, Old Tim! You’ve got the children spouting nonsense. I’ll barely sleep tonight as it is, after all this talk of you know what.”
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
