panic
noun
a sudden overwhelming fear, with or without cause, that produces hysterical or irrational behavior, and that often spreads quickly through a group of persons or animals.
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panic
1 American
[pan-ik]
/ ˈpæn ɪk /
noun
-
a sudden overwhelming fear, with or without cause, that produces hysterical or irrational behavior, and that often spreads quickly through a group of persons or animals.
-
an instance, outbreak, or period of such fear.
-
Finance. a sudden widespread fear concerning financial affairs leading to credit contraction and widespread sale of securities at depressed prices in an effort to acquire cash.
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Slang. someone or something that is considered hilariously funny.
The comedian was an absolute panic.
adjective
-
of the nature of, caused by, or indicating panic.
A wave of panic buying shook the stock market.
-
(of fear, terror, etc.) suddenly destroying the self-control and impelling to some frantic action.
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Panic, of or relating to the god Pan.
verb (used with object)
-
panics,
present (3rd person singular)
-
panicked,
past participle, past
-
panicking
present participle
-
to affect with panic; terrify and cause to flee or lose self-control.
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Slang. to keep (an audience or the like) highly amused.
verb (used without object)
-
panics,
present (3rd person singular)
-
panicked,
past participle, past
-
panicking
present participle
panic
2
American
[pan-ik]
/ ˈpæn ɪk /
noun
-
Also called panic grass. any grass of the genus Panicum, many species of which bear edible grain.
-
the grain.
panic
1
British
/ ˈpænɪk /
noun
-
a sudden overwhelming feeling of terror or anxiety, esp one affecting a whole group of people
-
(modifier) of or resulting from such terror
panic measures
verb
Panic
2
British
/ ˈpænɪk /
adjective
panic
Idioms
Synonym Usage
See terror.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
panicsimple
-
panicssimple
-
have panickedperfect
-
has panickedperfect
-
am panickingprogressive
-
are panickingprogressive
-
is panickingprogressive
-
have been panickingperfect progressive
-
has been panickingperfect progressive
Past
-
panickedsimple
-
had panickedperfect
-
was panickingprogressive
-
were panickingprogressive
-
had been panickingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of panic1
First recorded in 1580–90; earlier panique, from French, from Greek Panikós “of Pan”; see Pan, -ic
Origin of panic2
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English panik, from Latin pānicum “Italian millet”
Explanation
To panic is to become filled with fear and anxiety. Someone in a panic is totally freaking out. Have you ever heard someone say "Don't panic"? That's easier said than done. People panic when they lose control over themselves because of fear, stress, or danger. A pilot who runs into turbulence and then flees from the cockpit has panicked. A surgeon who makes a mistake might panic for a second, before chilling out and helping the patient. It's hard to do a good job when you panic. Panicking is pretty much the opposite of relaxing.
Vocabulary lists containing panic
Emotions on Display
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You Name It: Eponyms
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Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 1
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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:
Somewhere between the ever-changing headlines and the price chart, the oil market lost its appetite for panic.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 16, 2026
“Young adults respond rationally to inflation and stagnant wages” doesn’t inspire quite the same existential panic as “Gen Z killed nightlife,” but it’s probably closer to the truth.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
So-called panic scams can work by triggering stress responses that shift victims into fight-or-flight, clouding rational thought, according to cybersecurity experts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
One probation officer told the BBC the upcoming releases had put him and his colleagues into "a state of panic".
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Twice they had fallen asleep and woken in the darkness, crying out to each other in panic.
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
Panic surged, and many fans found themselves packed together with no clear escape.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
The Panic of 1873 had sparked the worst depression in U.S. history to date, and three years later the nation had yet to recover.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
After the Gunners lost at Etihad Stadium in April, City supporters unveiled a banner that said "Panic on the streets of London" - but Arsenal fans have used all of that to fuel their celebrations.
From BBC ● May 20, 2026
"Anxiety about emerging technologies is nothing new," said researcher Nirit Weiss-Blatt, whose Substack newsletter "AI Panic" covers the growing hostility towards artificial intelligence.
From Barron's ● Apr. 29, 2026
Panic churned up in her and she wanted to run away.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
She panics on red carpets and says interviews make her nervous, although she certainly doesn’t seem it today.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Among the many tedious features of market panics is the well-known cognitive error of catastrophizing.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 13, 2026
Whenever somebody stares at Sasha-Jay Davies in a supermarket, she panics, thinking they recognise her face and are about to confront her.
From BBC ● Mar. 11, 2026
Instead it’s a holdover from a bygone era of the gold standard, fixed exchange rates and periodic panics about global liquidity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026
If she panics, she’ll forget to hold on.
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
When my father, a journalist, read the comments, he panicked.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
In Orange County, an email landed in attorney Sabrina Rivera’s inbox in April, from a Colorado man panicked about the status of his immigration case.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
When she learned she was pregnant, “I panicked at the thought of spending 18 years in family court,” Ms. Barrett testified.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
"The office swayed violently side to side. I was afraid it would collapse. Everyone panicked," Hara said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
Her first panicked thought was that Lord Fredrick was out hunting in the middle of the night with his rifle and had somehow found them.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
I recounted the incident to my therapist, panicking at the prospect of a “date.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026
“Naturally, investors are panicking that we’re about to see cheap domestic supply flood a market that’s been overheating for months,” Nic Puckrin, founder of Coin Bureau and a cross-asset analyst, said in emailed comments.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
"The government reports make it sound absolutely terrifying, panicking everyone, right?" said another breakfast shop owner in Keelung surnamed Li, upset at the loss of business from the storm.
From Barron's ● Jul. 11, 2026
They took over CPR but said they were "panicking" as, after around five minutes, there was no change and a growing crowd of family members and wedding guests gathered around them watching.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
I thought she was panicking, changing her mind about seeing the cells.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
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.
