frighten
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Related to frighten: frighten away, frighten off
fright·en
(frīt′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: told ghost stories to campers who frightened easily.
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 more informal scare are the most widely applicable: "The Count's mysterious warning frightened me at the time" (Bram Stoker).We scared each other telling ghost stories before bed.
Alarm implies a state of fearful anxiety, often brought on suddenly: The sight of the approaching shark alarmed the swimmers.
Terrify implies overwhelming, often paralyzing fear: "It is the coming of death that terrifies me" (Oscar Wilde).
To terrorize is to strike fear into another, often for purposes of coercion: "The decent citizen was terrorized into paying public blackmail" (Arthur Conan Doyle).
Startle suggests a momentary fright 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.
These verbs mean to cause a person to experience fear. Frighten and the more informal scare are the most widely applicable: "The Count's mysterious warning frightened me at the time" (Bram Stoker).We scared each other telling ghost stories before bed.
Alarm implies a state of fearful anxiety, often brought on suddenly: The sight of the approaching shark alarmed the swimmers.
Terrify implies overwhelming, often paralyzing fear: "It is the coming of death that terrifies me" (Oscar Wilde).
To terrorize is to strike fear into another, often for purposes of coercion: "The decent citizen was terrorized into paying public blackmail" (Arthur Conan Doyle).
Startle suggests a momentary fright 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.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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
ˈfrightened adj
ˈfrightening adj
ˈfrighteningly adv
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
fright•en
(ˈfraɪt n)v.t.
1. to make afraid or fearful; throw into a fright; terrify; scare.
2. to drive by scaring (usu. fol. by away, off, etc.): to frighten away pigeons from the roof.
v.i. 3. to become frightened: a timid child who frightens easily.
[1660–70]
fright′en•a•ble, adj.
fright′en•er, n.
fright′en•ing•ly, adv.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
frighten
– frightened1. 'frighten'
If something frightens you, it makes you feel afraid.
Rats and mice don't frighten me.
Frighten is almost always a transitive verb. Don't say that someone 'frightens'. If you want to say that someone is afraid because of something that has happened or that might happen, you say that they are frightened.
Miriam was too frightened to tell her family what had happened.
He told the children not to be frightened.
For more information, see afraid - frightened
2. 'frightening'
Don't confuse frightened with frightening. Something that is frightening causes you to feel fear.
It was a very frightening experience.
It is frightening to think what damage could be done.
Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012
frighten
Past participle: frightened
Gerund: frightening
| Imperative |
|---|
| frighten |
| frighten |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| 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" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
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
frighten something or someone off or away scare off, startle, put the wind up (someone) (informal), throw into a fright He fired into the air to frighten them off.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
frighten
verbThe American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
خشّىيُرْعِبُيُرْعِب، يُذْعِر
děsitpolekatvystrašit
gøre bangeskræmme
erschreckenAngst machen
pelästyttääpelottaasäikyttää
prestrašiti
hræîa
怖がらせる
겁을 주다
nastrašiť
prestrašiti
skrämma
ทำให้ตกใจ
làm sợ hãi
frighten
[ˈfraɪtn] VT → asustarto 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
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
frighten
[ˈfraɪtən] vt → effrayer, faire peur àHorror 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] → chasserCollins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
frighten
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
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
frighten
[ˈfraɪtn] vt → spaventare, far paura ato 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)
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
fright
(frait) noun1. a sudden fear. the noise gave me a terrible fright.
2. a person who looks ridiculous. She looks a fright in those clothes.
stage frightstageˈfrighten verb to make (someone) afraid. She was frightened by a large dog.
ˈfrightened adjectiveˈfrightful adjective
1. terrible or frightening. I had a frightful experience.
2. very bad. He is a frightful liar.
ˈfrightening adjectiveˈfrightfully adverb
very. He's frightfully clever.
take fright to become frightened usually suddenly and quickly. She took fright and ran away.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
frighten
→ يُرْعِبُ děsit skræmme erschrecken τρομάζω asustar pelästyttää effrayer prestrašiti spaventare 怖がらせる 겁을 주다 bangmaken skremme przestraszyć assustar пугать skrämma ทำให้ตกใจ korkutmak làm sợ hãi 惊恐Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
frighten
vt asustarEnglish-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.