fright·en (fr t n)v. fright·ened, fright·en·ing, fright·ens v.tr. 1. To fill with fear; alarm. 2. To drive or force by arousing fear: The suspect was frightened into confessing. v.intr. To become afraid. fright en·er n.fright en·ing·ly adv.Synonyms: frighten, scare, alarm, terrify, terrorize, startle, panic 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. Alarm implies the often sudden onset of apprehension: Her sudden weight loss alarmed her doctor. Terrify implies overwhelming, often paralyzing fear: "It is the coming of death that terrifies me" (Oscar Wilde). Terrorize implies intimidation and sometimes suggests deliberate coercion: "The decent citizen was terrorized into paying public blackmail" (Arthur Conan Doyle). Startle suggests a momentary shock that may cause a sudden, involuntary movement of the body: The clap of thunder startled us. Panic implies sudden frantic fear that often impairs self-control and rationality: The realistic radio drama panicked the listeners who tuned in after it had begun. |
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Noun | 1. |  frightening - the act of inspiring with fear act of terrorism, terrorism, terrorist act - the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear bullying, intimidation - the act of intimidating a weaker person to make them do something |
| Adj. | 1. | frightening - causing fear or dread or terror; "the awful war"; "an awful risk"; "dire news"; "a career or vengeance so direful that London was shocked"; "the dread presence of the headmaster"; "polio is no longer the dreaded disease it once was"; "a dreadful storm"; "a fearful howling"; "horrendous explosions shook the city"; "a terrible curse" alarming - frightening because of an awareness of danger |
frightening
adjective terrifying, shocking, alarming, appalling, startling, dreadful, horrifying, menacing, intimidating, dismaying, scary (informal), fearful, daunting, fearsome, unnerving, spooky (informal), hair-raising, baleful, spine-chilling, bloodcurdling The number of youngsters involved in crime is frightening.
Translations
frightening
adj
(= alarming) experience, incident → furchterregend; situation, sight, prospect, feeling, thought, story → erschreckend; it was a frightening situation → die Situation war zum Fürchten; the most frightening sight → der entsetzlichste Anblick; to look frightening → zum Fürchten aussehen
frightening [ˈfraɪtnɪŋ] adj → pauroso/a, spaventoso/a
frightening [ˈfraɪtnɪŋ] adj → pauroso/a, spaventoso/a
frightening [ˈfraɪtnɪŋ] adj → pauroso/a, spaventoso/a
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