frightenfright‧en /ˈfraɪtn/ ●●● S3 W3 verb [transitive] 
Don’t stand so near the edge! You’re frightening me. She was frightened by the anger in his eyes. Computers used to frighten me, but not now.frighten somebody to death/frighten the life out of somebody (=make someone feel extremely afraid) He drove at a speed which frightened Lara to death.THESAURUSfrighten to make someone feel afraid: · The thought of being in court frightened him.scare especially spoken to frighten someone. Scare is less formal than frighten, and is the usual word to use in everyday English: · He was driving fast just to scare us.· It scared him to think that his mother might never recover.terrify to make someone feel extremely frightened: · The idea of going down into the caves terrified her.· Robbers terrified bank staff by threatening them at gunpoint.give somebody a fright to make someone suddenly feel frightened in a way that makes their heart beat more quickly: · It gave me a terrible fright when I found him unconscious on the floor.give somebody the creeps if a person or place gives you the creeps, they make you feel slightly frightened because they are strange: · This house gives me the creeps.startle to frighten someone. Used when you suddenly see someone and did not know they were there, or when you suddenly hear something: · I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.· The noise startled him, and he dropped his glass on the floor.alarm to make someone feel frightened and worried that something bad might happen: · I didn’t want to alarm her by calling in the middle of the night.intimidate to deliberately frighten someone, especially so that they will do what you want: · Many of the gangs were using dogs to intimidate people.frighten somebody ↔ away phrasal verb to make a person or animal go away by making them feel afraid: Terrorist activity in the area has frightened most tourists away.frighten somebody into something phrasal verb to force someone to do something by making them afraidfrighten somebody into doing something He frightened me into staying silent.frighten somebody/something ↔ off phrasal verb to make a person or animal so nervous or afraid that they go away or do not do something they were going to do: The investors were frightened off by the company’s low profits that year.
VERB TABLE
frighten
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | frighten |
| he, she, it | frightens | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | frightened |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have frightened |
| he, she, it | has frightened | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had frightened |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will frighten |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have frightened |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am frightening |
| he, she, it | is frightening | |
| you, we, they | are frightening | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was frightening |
| you, we, they | were frightening | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been frightening |
| he, she, it | has been frightening | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been frightening |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be frightening |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been frightening |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Does the thought of death frighten you?
- Film-makers have always known that one way to capture an audience is to frighten it out of its wits.
- It frightens me to know that the rapist still hasn't been caught.
- Melissa spun round to see Eddie standing behind her. "You frightened the daylights out me!" she gasped. "I never heard you come in."
- Take that silly mask off -- you're frightening the children.
- The driver was frightened by the shots.
- The man pulled out a gun and managed to frighten off his attackers.
- Their lawyers tried to frighten us into signing the contract.
- Travis, you just frighten the dog when you play that music.
- What are you doing creeping up on me like that? You frightened the life out of me!
- He was broke and he was frightened.
- I think she was frightened to be too strict.
- I wasn't frightened of it.
- Many couples have been frightened by questionable results.
- Now he could imagine children being frightened of it.
THESAURUS
to make someone feel afraid: · The thought of being in court frightened him.
especially spoken to frighten someone. Scare is less formal than frighten, and is the usual word to use in everyday English: · He was driving fast just to scare us.· It scared him to think that his mother might never recover.
to make someone feel extremely frightened: · The idea of going down into the caves terrified her.· Robbers terrified bank staff by threatening them at gunpoint.
to make someone suddenly feel frightened in a way that makes their heart beat more quickly: · It gave me a terrible fright when I found him unconscious on the floor.
if a person or place gives you the creeps, they make you feel slightly frightened because they are strange: · This house gives me the creeps.
to frighten someone. Used when you suddenly see someone and did not know they were there, or when you suddenly hear something: · I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.· The noise startled him, and he dropped his glass on the floor.
to make someone feel frightened and worried that something bad might happen: · I didn’t want to alarm her by calling in the middle of the night.
to deliberately frighten someone, especially so that they will do what you want: · Many of the gangs were using dogs to intimidate people.
Longman Language Activatorto make someone feel frightened · Does the thought of death frighten you?· Take that silly mask off -- you're frightening the children.it frightens somebody to know/think etc · It frightens me to know that the rapist still hasn't been caught.frighten the life out of somebody (=make someone feel very frightened) · What are you doing creeping up on me like that? You frightened the life out of me!frighten somebody out of their wits (=make someone feel very frightened) · Film-makers have always known that one way to capture an audience is to frighten it out of its wits. frighten the (living) daylights out of somebody (=make someone feel very frightened) · Melissa spun round to see Eddie standing behind her. "You frightened the daylights out of me!" she gasped. "I never heard you come in."frighten somebody into doing something (=make someone do something by frightening them) · Their lawyers tried to frighten us into signing the contract.frighten somebody off/frighten off somebody (=frighten someone so that they go away or stop trying to do something) · The man pulled out a gun and managed to frighten off his attackers.
especially spoken to make someone feel frightened, especially by making them think something very unpleasant might happen: · He was driving fast just to scare us.· We're not really going to get arrested - I think the police are trying to scare us.it scares somebody to know/think etc: · It scared him to think that his mother might never recover.scare the hell out of somebody (=make someone feel very frightened) informal: · She scared the hell out of me when she said she had to go into hospital.scare the (living) daylights out of somebody (=make someone feel very frightened): · Don't creep up on me like that! You scared the living daylights out of me!
to make someone feel very frightened: · The idea of going down into the caves terrified her.· The teacher terrified her so much, that she hated going to school.· My uncle suffers from agoraphobia, and the idea of leaving the house terrifies him.it terrifies somebody to think/know etc: · It terrified him to think that, in six months' time, he would have to stand up in front of a class and teach them something.
to make someone suddenly feel frightened so that they make a sudden movement or their heart starts beating quickly: · He really gave me a fright when he phoned at that time of night.give somebody a hell of a fright (=make someone suddenly very frightened) informal: · I accidentally touched a live wire in the motor, and even though it didn't hurt me it gave me a hell of a fright.
to make people feel very worried about a possible danger: · We don't wish to alarm people unnecessarily, but it would be wise to avoid drinking the tap water here.· Many women are alarmed by suggestions of a link between the contraceptive pill and breast cancer.
if someone or something startles you, they frighten you because you see them suddenly or hear them when you did not know they were there: · I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you.· The noise startled him, and he dropped his glass on the floor.· Any unexpected movements can startle the animal, so it must be approached slowly and steadily.
to suddenly surprise and frighten someone so that they make a sudden movement: · Sorry! I didn't mean to make you jump.· Something darted out from behind the hedge, and made me jump.
if a person or a place gives you the creeps , they make you feel slightly frightened and nervous because they are strange: · This house gives me the creeps - it's so dark and quiet.· I hate being left alone in the office with Graham - he gives me the creeps.
informal if something such as a story or account makes your hair stand on end it makes you very frightened: · Wait until I tell you about the murder -- it'll make your hair stand on end.· I've heard rumours about how Captain Crayshaw disciplines his crew... things to make your hair stand on end.
if a thought or experience sends shivers down your spine , it makes you feel very frightened especially because it involves someone or something that is very evil: · When you think of what happened in that house, it sends shivers down your spine.· Mere mention of his name is enough to send shivers down the spine of even the most battle-hardened fighter.
if a thought or experience makes your blood run cold , it shocks and frightens you because it is extremely cruel, violent, or dangerous: · The thought of ever returning to the prison makes his blood run cold. · The man stepped forward, and when Amelie saw him give a Nazi salute, it made her blood run cold.
to deliberately frighten someone to make someone feel frightened about what will happen if they do not do something, so that they do it. Scare somebody into is more informal than frighten somebody into: frighten/scare somebody into doing something: · The Nationalists kept talking about the "Communist threat" to scare people into voting for them.· Stapleton had tried to frighten her into keeping quiet, but she had refused to be intimidated.
also terrorise British to deliberately frighten people over a long period of time, by using violence or by threatening them, especially in order to make them do what you want: · Some of the older children dominated the playground and terrorized the smaller kids.· A gang of youths are roaming the city, vandalising stores, starting fires, and terrorizing people.terrorize somebody into doing something (=make someone do something by using violence, threats etc): · With threats, beatings, and even murder, the workers were terrorized into leaving their unions.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY Napoleon threatened to starve the country into submission.COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB
(=make someone feel extremely afraid) He drove at a speed which frightened Lara to death.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES He drove at a speed which frightened Lara to death.· I was frightened of my father.
Napoleon threatened to starve the country into submission.· But his presence has failed to frighten away the opposition and 11 runners have stood their ground at the five-day declaration stage.· The extremist characterization frightened away mainstream civil rights organizations, which made Hampton even more vulnerable to attack.· To frighten away thieves and bring fertility.· Guns are shot into the branches to frighten away evil spirits.· He frightened away the best of our health.
· He was cold, but he was more frightened than cold.· And the more frightened I became, the angrier I grew.· When she dies I think she is going to be more frightened than she expects.· The Raiders can hardly imagine a more frightening sight.· But Daphne flew on, even more frightened than before.· Anthony Hopkins was much more frightening as a serial killer than Currie is as the son of Satan.· But each day the voices returned, Marsha grew more frightened.
· Most frightening of all, no one knew how you got it.· That was probably the most frightened I had been.· Most frightening of all is the time scale.· The letter H became the most frightening in the alphabet.· I was most frightened by not knowing what made me afraid.
· His success in the fraudulent libel action against the Star newspaper undoubtedly frightened off a lot of the media.· I was merely about to fire a blank to frighten off some stray cats.· Al Jourgensen is seen wandering around the hotel foyer hugging a wooden duck, used to frighten off local wildlife.· Tethered in the field, it hovers above the crop and frightens off pigeons, rooks and crows.· It is the fear of frightening off investors that has stopped the government investing in water quality.· The Spice Girl has told pals that Dan, of the group Tomcat, was frightened off by her ten tattoos.· Your baby must have frightened off the intruder.
· Dad steadied the bottom of the ladder but it still swung about a bit which really frightened me.· The consequences for the financial future of the nation and even of the world are really frightening.· I was really frightened they would hurt each other.· The Great Slayer really frightened me.
· When the Blefuscans saw me, they were so frightened that they jumped out of their ships and swam to the beach.· The prospects of this change so frightened local businesses that they pushed the state Legislature to make the initiative illegal.· Dad was so frightened to go.· When he sees Queequeg enter, he is frightened so much that he can do nothing but observe him.· The girl was so frightened by this that she opened the door herself.· If I am alone in a room, I get so frightened I start to shake.· Susan was so frightened of being alone, that she would not go to sleep, in case we left her.· He strained backward and he was so frightened that they had a difficult time holding him.
· She was too frightened to struggle.· We were too frightened to talk.· He was too frightened to tell police.· They are simply too frightened, Muratovic said.· She is too frightened, too tense, like a coiled creature ready to do harm.· Jerry and I are too frightened and too young to take part.· This time, she said, she was too frightened to venture in, in case the thieves were still there.· The girl was too frightened to move.
· At the beginning I was very frightened.· It had now become a very frightening ride, and chills began to run through me.· She reassured me, as I was very frightened, and was kindness itself.· But that just made it a very frightening experience.· Suddenly Jane was very frightened - for herself, for Mousa, and for her unborn child.· I get very frightened when I think about it....· Bruno was tall and naturally pale; more so now because he was also very frightened.· Is it reasonable to be very frightened of a crash when the chances are one in one thousand that it will happen?
NOUN· I was never aware of being frightened as a child because I saw his fits many times.· He in turn saw the waiting women, the frightened children, the solitary oak and the drinking soldiers.· Male speaker I fear for Birmingham with this madman let loose, wandering around the streets frightening the children.· She seemed frightened of the other children and avoided them for the initial part of free play.· This is just a fable to frighten the children with a bit of free preaching thrown in.· He cut his school off from the outside world so that nobody would see how cowed and frightened the children were.· I wonder if the children in the engang are frightened.· Egan recognizes the frightening ability children have to hurt their parents.
· It frightened me to death if you want to know.· He never understood the fools who paid to frighten themselves to death.· Even if a Black girl has nothing on her, it frightens her to death.· It soon went too fast for him and the village pastor who appeared from the other direction was nearly frightened to death!
· Polly had never been so frightened in her life.· In the first place, the opinion polls frightened the life out of everyone.· One victim, who asked not to be named, said he was frightened for his life.· But, as I predicted last Sunday, it frightened the life out of everyone at Smith Square.· Although acquitted, he was frightened for his life.· Of course, it frightened the life out of him.· It frightened the life out of them.
· And it's frightening to some people.· Television news, in other words, tends to frighten people.· They think it was a trick by the Garda or the judges to frighten people and teach them a lesson.· You are no longer frightened of certain people, situations or possible problems.· Instead he frightens people with Hell every Sabbath.· Although equations are a concise and accurate way of describing mathematical ideas, they frighten most people.· They don't go around trying to frighten people just for pleasure.· Why did he have to frighten people so much?
· Knowing the cat as well as she did, Mildred could see that, despite its size, it was frightened out of its wits.· Maura, tears running down her face, was frightened out of her wits.· There is a beautiful little iron-grey mare here that Alejandro has frightened out of her wits and says is too wet for polo.
VERB· It had now become a very frightening ride, and chills began to run through me.· These children almost see too much: they are so aware of what they see that they become frightened or overwhelmed.· He wore sinister rimless spectacles, and had the potential to become frightening.· The Republicans, by the 1940s, were becoming frightened.· He became greatly frightened at this and made many motions to Dorothy to relieve him, but she could not understand.· The letter H became the most frightening in the alphabet.
· Patients can feel insecure and frightened in this new environment and anxiety increases the risk of accident.· Poor little thing, she would be feeling so lonely and frightened, and Jean's kind heart went out to her.· Women who have never heard that such a response is not only possible but normal feel guilty and frightened.· Daniel looked at the angry sea with its terrible waves, and he felt cold and frightened.· They didn't know what she was talking about but they could feel she was frightened.· He felt both elated and frightened.· We lose our temper, feel cornered and frightened, it can be the work of an instant.
· He hadn't seemed frightened and he hadn't seemed sullen.· She seemed frightened of the other children and avoided them for the initial part of free play.· I tried to look very understanding, very sympathetic, but it seemed to frighten him.· Hannah had been slow to warm up to her father and initially seemed frightened by him.· Nowadays food can seem like a frightening health hazard.· At first he seemed frightened, but after a while he started spending almost every Saturday there.
· It is as if they are trying to frighten us out of doing our job.· He also made the mistake of trying to frighten the miners with the consequence of sticking to existing conditions.· He was trying to frighten them.· They will try to frighten voters back to the two old parties.· Harriet thought that Ben was trying to frighten Paul, but Paul was hysterical.· They don't go around trying to frighten people just for pleasure.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► scare/frighten the (living) daylights out of somebody► afraid/frightened/scared etc of your own shadow► be a (beautiful/strange/frightening etc) sight to behold► frighten/scare/terrify somebody out of their wits
- When, however-many years later-the script finally did arrive, two things scared the life out of me.
WORD FAMILYadjectivefrightenedfrighteningfrightfulnounfrightfrightenersadverbfrighteninglyfrightfullyverbfrighten
to make someone feel afraid SYN scare: Don’t stand so near the edge! You’re frightening me. She was frightened by the anger in his eyes. Computers used to frighten me, but not now.frighten somebody to death/frighten the life out of somebody (=make someone feel extremely afraid) He drove at a speed which frightened Lara to death.THESAURUSfrighten to make someone feel afraid: · The thought of being in court frightened him.scare especially spoken to frighten someone. Scare is less formal than frighten, and is the usual word to use in everyday English: · He was driving fast just to scare us.· It scared him to think that his mother might never recover.terrify to make someone feel extremely frightened: · The idea of going down into the caves terrified her.· Robbers terrified bank staff by threatening them at gunpoint.give somebody a fright to make someone suddenly feel frightened in a way that makes their heart beat more quickly: · It gave me a terrible fright when I found him unconscious on the floor.give somebody the creeps if a person or place gives you the creeps, they make you feel slightly frightened because they are strange: · This house gives me the creeps.startle to frighten someone. Used when you suddenly see someone and did not know they were there, or when you suddenly hear something: · I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.· The noise startled him, and he dropped his glass on the floor.alarm to make someone feel frightened and worried that something bad might happen: · I didn’t want to alarm her by calling in the middle of the night.intimidate to deliberately frighten someone, especially so that they will do what you want: · Many of the gangs were using dogs to intimidate people.frighten somebody ↔ away phrasal verb to make a person or animal go away by making them feel afraid: Terrorist activity in the area has frightened most tourists away.frighten somebody into something phrasal verb to force someone to do something by making them afraidfrighten somebody into doing something He frightened me into staying silent.frighten somebody/something ↔ off phrasal verb to make a person or animal so nervous or afraid that they go away or do not do something they were going to do: The investors were frightened off by the company’s low profits that year.