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. |
frighten [ˈfraɪtən]
vb (tr)
1. to cause fear in; terrify; scare
2. to drive or force to go (away, off, out, in, etc.) by making afraid
frightenable adj
frighteningly adv
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Verb | 1. | frighten - cause fear in; "The stranger who hangs around the building frightens me"; "Ghosts could never affright her" bluff - frighten someone by pretending to be stronger than one really is stimulate, stir, shake up, excite, shake - stir the feelings, emotions, or peace of; "These stories shook the community"; "the civil war shook the country" awe - inspire awe in; "The famous professor awed the undergraduates" intimidate - make timid or fearful; "Her boss intimidates her" alarm, horrify, appal, appall, dismay - fill with apprehension or alarm; cause to be unpleasantly surprised; "I was horrified at the thought of being late for my interview"; "The news of the executions horrified us" consternate - fill with anxiety, dread, dismay, or confusion; "After the terrorist attack, people look consternated" spook - frighten or scare, and often provoke into a violent action; "The noise spooked the horse" daunt, frighten away, frighten off, scare away, scare off, pall, scare, dash - cause to lose courage; "dashed by the refusal" |
| 2. | frighten - drive out by frightening chase away, dispel, drive away, drive off, drive out, run off, turn back - force to go away; used both with concrete and metaphoric meanings; "Drive away potential burglars"; "drive away bad thoughts"; "dispel doubts"; "The supermarket had to turn back many disappointed customers" |
frighten
verb scare, shock, alarm, terrify, cow, appal, startle, intimidate, dismay, daunt, unnerve, petrify, unman, terrorize, scare (someone) stiff, put the wind up (someone) (informal), scare the living daylights out of (someone) (informal), make your hair stand on end (informal), get the wind up, make your blood run cold, throw into a panic, scare the bejesus out of (informal), affright (archaic), freeze your blood, make (someone) jump out of his skin (informal), throw into a fright Most children are frightened by the sight of blood.
encourage, comfort, calm, reassure, soothe, hearten, allay, assuage
encourage, comfort, calm, reassure, soothe, hearten, allay, assuage
Translations
frighten [ˈfraɪtn] VT → asustar
to be frightened → tener miedo (of a) don't be frightened! → ¡no te asustes!
she is easily frightened → se asusta con facilidad, es asustadiza
to frighten sb into doing sth → convencer a algn con amenazas de que haga algo
I was frightened out of my wits or to death → estaba aterrorizado
to be frightened → tener miedo (of a) don't be frightened! → ¡no te asustes!
she is easily frightened → se asusta con facilidad, es asustadiza
to frighten sb into doing sth → convencer a algn con amenazas de que haga algo
I was frightened out of my wits or to death → estaba aterrorizado
frighten [ˈfraɪtən] vt → effrayer, faire peur à
Horror films frighten him → Les films d'horreur lui font peur.
to frighten sb into doing sth → faire faire qch à qn par l'intimidation
to frighten the life out of sb, to frighten the wits out of sb → faire une peur bleue à qn
Horror films frighten him → Les films d'horreur lui font peur.
to frighten sb into doing sth → faire faire qch à qn par l'intimidation
to frighten the life out of sb, to frighten the wits out of sb → faire une peur bleue à qn
frighten away
vt [+ birds, children] → faire fuir, effaroucherfrighten off
vt [+ people] → chasserfrighten
vt (= give a sudden fright) → erschrecken, Angst einjagen (+dat); (= make scared) → Angst machen (+dat), → Angst einjagen (+dat); (idea, thought) → ängstigen, Angst or Furcht einflößen (+dat); I’m not easily frightened → ich fürchte mich nicht so schnell, ich habe nicht so schnell Angst; (with threats etc) → so schnell or leicht kann man mir keine Angst machen; to be frightened by something → vor etw (dat) → erschrecken; to frighten somebody into agreeing to something → jdm solche Angst machen, dass er/sie einer Sache (dat) → zustimmt; to frighten the life out of somebody → jdn zu Tode erschrecken
frighten [ˈfraɪtn] vt → spaventare, far paura a
to frighten sb out of their wits → far morire qn dallo spavento
to be frightened of sth → avere paura di qc
he was frightened into doing it → l'ha fatto per paura
I was frightened to death → ero morto di paura
frighten [ˈfraɪtn] vt → spaventare, far paura a
to frighten sb out of their wits → far morire qn dallo spavento
to be frightened of sth → avere paura di qc
he was frightened into doing it → l'ha fatto per paura
I was frightened to death → ero morto di paura
to frighten sb out of their wits → far morire qn dallo spavento
to be frightened of sth → avere paura di qc
he was frightened into doing it → l'ha fatto per paura
I was frightened to death → ero morto di paura
frighten away frighten off vt + adv (birds, children) → scacciare (facendogli paura)
frighten [ˈfraɪtn] vt → spaventare, far paura a
to frighten sb out of their wits → far morire qn dallo spavento
to be frightened of sth → avere paura di qc
he was frightened into doing it → l'ha fatto per paura
I was frightened to death → ero morto di paura
frighten away frighten off vt + adv (birds, children) → scacciare (facendogli paura)
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