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scare

 - 4 dictionary results

scare

  [skair] verb, scared, scar⋅ing, noun
Use scare in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to fill, esp. suddenly, with fear or terror; frighten; alarm.
–verb (used without object)
2. to become frightened: That horse scares easily.
–noun
3. a sudden fright or alarm, esp. with little or no reason.
4. a time or condition of alarm or worry: For three months there was a war scare.
—Verb phrase
5. scare up, Informal. to obtain with effort; find or gather: to scare up money.
Origin:
1150–1200; (v.) ME skerren < ON skirra to frighten, deriv. of skjarr timid, shy; (n.) late ME skere, deriv. of the v.

Related forms:
scarer, noun
scar⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. startle, intimidate. See frighten.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To scare
scare   (skâr)   
v.   scared, scar·ing, scares

v.   tr.
To strike with sudden fear; alarm. See Synonyms at frighten.
v.   intr.
To become frightened: a child who scares easily.
n.  

  1. A condition or sensation of sudden fear.

  2. A general state of alarm; a panic: a bomb scare that necessitated evacuating the building.

adj.  Serving or intended to frighten people: scare stories; scare tactics.
Phrasal Verb(s):
scare up Informal To gather or prepare with considerable effort or ingenuity: managed to scare up some folding chairs for the unexpected crowd.

[Middle English skerren, scaren, from Old Norse skirra, from skjarr, timid.]
scar'er 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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Word Origin & History

scare  (v.)
c.1200, from O.N. skirra "to frighten," related to skjarr "timid, shy," of unknown origin. The noun is attested from 1530. To scare up "procure, obtain" is first recorded 1846, Amer.Eng., from notion of rousing game from cover. Scarecrow first recorded 1553, earliest ref. is to a person employed to scare birds. Stick-figure sense is implied by 1589. Scary is first recorded 1582; scaremonger is from 1888. To scare up "find, produce" is 1853, from the notion of hunters rousing game Scared stiff first recorded 1900; scared shitless is from 1936. Scaredy-cat "timid person" first attested 1933, in Dorothy Parker.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Idioms & Phrases

scare

In addition to the idioms beginning with scare, also see run scared.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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