5 dictionary results for: frighten
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
fright·en
[frahyt-n] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
[frahyt-n] Pronunciation Key –verb (used with object)
–verb (used without object)
| 1. | to make afraid or fearful; throw into a fright; terrify; scare. |
| 2. | to drive (usually fol. by away, off, etc.) by scaring: to frighten away pigeons from the roof. |
| 3. | to become frightened: a timid child who frightens easily. |
—Related forms
fright·en·a·ble, adjective
fright·en·er, noun
fright·en·ing·ly, adverb
—Synonyms 1. shock, startle, dismay, intimidate. 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, esp. 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.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| fright·en
(frīt'n) Pronunciation Key
v. fright·ened, fright·en·ing, fright·ens v. tr.
v. intr. To become afraid. fright'en·er n., fright'en·ing·ly adv. Synonyms: These verbs mean to cause a person to experience fear. Frighten and the less formal scare are the most widely applicable: "The Count's mysterious warning frightened me at the time" (Bram Stoker). The angry dog scared the small child. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| frighten | |
verb | |
| 1. | cause fear in; "The stranger who hangs around the building frightens me"; "Ghosts could never affright her" |
| 2. | drive out by frightening |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Frighten
Fright"en\, v. t. [imp. Frightened; p. pr. & vb. n. Frightening.] [See Fright, v. t.] To disturb with fear; to throw into a state of alarm or fright; to affright; to terrify. More frightened than hurt. --Old Proverb.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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