as in to scare
to strike with fear
around the campfire the campers tried to frighten one another with ghostly legends and grisly tales
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of frighten
They were awakened by the noise of broken glass, which frightened his eldest child.
—
Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 10 Dec. 2024
Marina, frightened, fled the spa, almost leaving behind her shirt, and spent the next hour looking over her shoulder to see whether the woman had, in fact, called someone.
—Keith Gessen, The New Yorker, 10 Jan. 2025
Some frightened residents even abandoned their cars on one of the only roads in and out of the upscale Pacific Palisades area, fleeing on foot from the engulfing blaze.
—Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2025
With his ghostly appearance, wild hair and scissors for hands, Edward has the capacity to frighten most children, but the younger Depp’s fears stemmed from a different reason entirely.
—Mariel Turner, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for frighten 
Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 10 Dec. 2024
Marina, frightened, fled the spa, almost leaving behind her shirt, and spent the next hour looking over her shoulder to see whether the woman had, in fact, called someone.
—Keith Gessen, The New Yorker, 10 Jan. 2025
Some frightened residents even abandoned their cars on one of the only roads in and out of the upscale Pacific Palisades area, fleeing on foot from the engulfing blaze.
—Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2025
With his ghostly appearance, wild hair and scissors for hands, Edward has the capacity to frighten most children, but the younger Depp’s fears stemmed from a different reason entirely.
—Mariel Turner, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for frighten
Recent Examples of Synonyms for frighten
Verb
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All these precautions are not meant to scare people, Tetro and Gerba said, but to inform.—
Melanie Radzicki McManus,
CNN,
25 Jan. 2025
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Because these WMAs are designed to provide two conflicting services — to maintain wildlife habitat and to offer recreation, including hunting opportunities that may scare the birds away — no one really knows how the resident geese perceive the situation.—
GrrlScientist,
Forbes,
24 Jan. 2025
Verb
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At the Commerce Department, employees were terrified whenever a meeting was called, one worker said.—
Erica L. Green,
New York Times,
25 Jan. 2025
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Set in a German port in the 1830s, the remake follows a haunted young woman named Ellen Hutter (Depp) and Count Orlok (Skarsgård), the terrifying vampire who becomes infatuated with her.—
Michaela Zee,
Variety,
22 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The 72-year-old was startled awake about 3:30 a.m. Wednesday by his landlord banging on his door.—
Ben Poston,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Jan. 2025
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The warning prompted a flood of social media posts from residents startled awake by emergency alerts.—
Stephan Pechdimaldji,
Newsweek,
15 Dec. 2024
Verb
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While the horror genre continues to evolve onscreen, the stories of R.L. Stine are spooking audiences of a whole new generation.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
10 Jan. 2025
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That news spooked investors, who were already on the lookout for unexpected economic turns as Inauguration Day approaches.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA TODAY,
8 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near frighten
Cite this Entry
“Frighten.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/frighten. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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