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affright - 6 dictionary results

af⋅fright

  [uh-frahyt] Archaic.
Use affright in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to frighten.
–noun
2. sudden fear or terror; fright.
3. a source of terror.
4. the act of terrifying.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME afrighten, OE āfyrhtan, equiv. to ā- a- 3 + fyrhtan to fright
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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af·fright   (ə-frīt')   
tr.v.   af·fright·ed, af·fright·ing, af·frights
To arouse fear in; terrify: "Many of nature's greatest oddities, that would affright dwellers up here, are accepted down there" (David Mazel).
n.  
  1. Great fear; terror.
  2. A cause of terror.

[Middle English afrighten, from Old English āfyrhtan : ā-, intensive pref. + fyrhtan, to frighten (from fyrhto, fright).]
af·fright'ment n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Affright

Af*fright"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Affrighted; p. pr. & vb. n. Affrighting.] [Orig. p. p.; OE. afright, AS. [=a]fyrhtan to terrify; [=a]- (cf. Goth. us-, Ger. er-, orig. meaning out) + fyrhto fright. See Fright.] To impress with sudden fear; to frighten; to alarm.

Dreams affright our souls. --Shak.

A drear and dying sound Affrights the flamens at their service quaint. --Milton.

Syn: To terrify; frighten; alarm; dismay; appall; scare; startle; daunt; intimidate.

Affright

Af*fright"\, p. a. Affrighted. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

Affright

Af*fright"\, n. 1. Sudden and great fear; terror. It expresses a stronger impression than fear, or apprehension, perhaps less than terror.

He looks behind him with affright, and forward with despair. --Goldsmith.

2. The act of frightening; also, a cause of terror; an object of dread. --B. Jonson.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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affright 
1589, a late construction from a- (1) + fright (v.), probably on model of earlier pp. adj. affright "struck with sudden fear" (O.E. afyrht).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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