as in to frighten
to strike with fear
the prospect of speaking in front of a huge crowd of people absolutely terrifies me
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Recent Examples of terrify
The stuffy 19th-century British public was frankly terrified of the prospect of a teenage girl whose lust for a man quickly morphed into bloodlust in just one act.
—
E.r. Zarevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Mar. 2025
The thought of him suffering injuries like mine terrifies me more than anything.
—Charlotte Phillipp, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025
They are devastated by what has happened, and terrified of what could happen if the current ceasefire collapses and the war and bombing resumes.
—Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 3 Mar. 2025
The very idea of going to the Oscars on acid sounds terrifying AF, but so does coming off acid in the middle of the Oscars, which also happened to Parker and Stone.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 2 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for terrify
E.r. Zarevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Mar. 2025
The thought of him suffering injuries like mine terrifies me more than anything.
—Charlotte Phillipp, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025
They are devastated by what has happened, and terrified of what could happen if the current ceasefire collapses and the war and bombing resumes.
—Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 3 Mar. 2025
The very idea of going to the Oscars on acid sounds terrifying AF, but so does coming off acid in the middle of the Oscars, which also happened to Parker and Stone.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 2 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for terrify
Recent Examples of Synonyms for terrify
Verb
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Miller, of course, is aware that Trump’s intention, always, is to shock, to play the madman, and thus frighten his rivals and alter the terms of the debate.—
David Remnick,
The New Yorker,
5 Feb. 2025
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Seeing those kinds of numbers in headlines may have started to frighten U.S. consumers, data shows.—
Meghan Hall,
Sourcing Journal,
4 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Education, management and enforcement needs to be re-evaluated so this type of transportation doesn’t continue to scare pedestrians.—
Jonathan Horwitz,
Orange County Register,
21 Mar. 2025
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Possibly, those who spent a lot of time looking at all kinds of NPCs are harder to scare with imperfect 3D models of people.—
Victor Erukhimov,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
Verb
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There are frequent shots of monkeys around this season’s White Lotus, glaring on branches just out of reach, occasionally bounding down and startling the guests.—
Joe Joyce,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
14 Mar. 2025
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With her nerves already on edge, Blanche is further startled by the arrival of her brother-in-law Stanley, a brutish drunk who has bulldozed his way into Stella’s heart.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
12 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Terrify.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/terrify. Accessed 30 Mar. 2025.
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