terrify
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Related Words
See frighten.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of terrify
1565–75; < Latin terrificāre, equivalent to terr ( ēre ) to frighten + -ificāre -ify
Explanation
If you terrify someone, that person is enormously frightened of you. The verb terrify is closely related to the word terror, and its Latin root is terrificus, "causing terror." While some people might say that monsters terrify them, others are terrified by heights, snakes, or speaking in public. If there's something that makes you feel a deep, horrible sense of fear, it terrifies you.
Vocabulary lists containing terrify
"The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry
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"In the Spotlight," Vocabulary from the informational text
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The House of Hades
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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.
Zak Brown, the chief executive officer of McLaren Racing, has called him "relentless" and likened him to a horror movie character who keeps coming back to life to terrify his victims.
From BBC • Dec. 4, 2025
Here’s the part that should terrify everyone buying “AI-powered trading systems” in 2025: Even now, with every firm on Wall Street running the same technology, Medallion still beats them.
From MarketWatch • Nov. 15, 2025
“I’ve come to view Jesus the way I’ve come to view Elvis. I love the guy, but some of the fan clubs terrify me.”
From Salon • Sep. 19, 2025
“We are going to terrify with some of the most startling, extraordinary things with the physical production.”
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 6, 2024
Howard Levanthal didn’t redouble his efforts to terrify his students into getting a tetanus shot.
From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
