frighten
verb (used with object)
to make afraid or fearful; throw into a fright; terrify; scare.
had been frightening
-
past perfect progressiveof frighten.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
The vast majority of people in the middle of the debate were silent while the "people at the extremes" and rhetoric in the media had been "frightening for young people", the clinician said.
From BBC ● Feb. 15, 2026
The head of one independent production company said it had been "frightening" to see other companies go bust in 2024.
From BBC ● Dec. 29, 2024
The past several years had been frightening for Campbell.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 7, 2018
Somehow the memory of the falling rocks faded with the owl’s cry, and what had been frightening and unexplainable grew distant.
From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya
It occurred to all of them, though, that the rumors had been frightening enough to make Mrs. Ross cancel her after-school remedial reading class—which she almost never did—and come home early.
From "The Egypt Game" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
