frightened; frightening
ˈfrī-tᵊn-iŋ 
ˈfrīt-niŋ
1
: to make afraid : terrify
The movie scene frightened the child.
2
: to drive or force by frightening
frightened the boy into confessing
: to become frightened
She doesn't frighten easily.
Examples of frighten in a Sentence
The story really frightened me.
The child was badly frightened by the mask.
Recent Examples on the Web
Most give up halfway, frightened by the warnings of those below.
—
Sudhir Gupta, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025
While the notion might frighten fans who have Thursday nights perpetually blocked off on their calendars, shorter episodes could prove beneficial in giving the Critical Role founders a little bit of a break.
—Dana Reboe, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2025
They are jointly frustrated over the legislature’s incompetence—and frightened by Beijing’s interference in Taiwanese democracy (which was evident throughout the recall campaigns).
—Lev Nachman, Foreign Affairs, 1 Aug. 2025
Courtney begins working in the shop incognito and that’s when a quirky meet-cute unfolds: Thea Quinn is frightened by a pet lizard and lets out a blood-curdling scream.
—Emily St. Martin, Oc Register, 31 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for frighten
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Sudhir Gupta, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025
While the notion might frighten fans who have Thursday nights perpetually blocked off on their calendars, shorter episodes could prove beneficial in giving the Critical Role founders a little bit of a break.
—Dana Reboe, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2025
They are jointly frustrated over the legislature’s incompetence—and frightened by Beijing’s interference in Taiwanese democracy (which was evident throughout the recall campaigns).
—Lev Nachman, Foreign Affairs, 1 Aug. 2025
Courtney begins working in the shop incognito and that’s when a quirky meet-cute unfolds: Thea Quinn is frightened by a pet lizard and lets out a blood-curdling scream.
—Emily St. Martin, Oc Register, 31 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for frighten
Cite this Entry
“Frighten.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/frighten. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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