: feeling fear : made to feel afraid
a badly frightened child
The farmer was hurrying out into the road, and his wife was standing at the gate, looking very frightened.—
Anna Sewell
Anna SewellSynonyms
Examples of frightened in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Still, that kind of frightened defensiveness is, for good or ill, part of our time, and perhaps just as unavoidable.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 25 Apr. 2024
The video on Instagram shows the visibly frightened cub looking up at the rescuer and the rope and curling into a tighter ball in the corner.
—Brooke Baitinger, Idaho Statesman, 23 Apr. 2024
Krause, a deputy fire marshal for the state of Oregon, crouched down to get a closer look and saw a frightened puppy hiding.
—Cathy Free, Washington Post, 14 Apr. 2024
Defense spending stayed low across the West not just because of budget pressures, but also because everyone – including the US – was frightened to provoke Russia.
—Luke McGee, CNN, 4 Apr. 2024
Experts have also theorized that whales that become frightened of nearby predators could flee in a panic to shallow waters.
—Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 18 Mar. 2024
Not a frightened superstar who would publicly lie about a gambling addiction to save his skin.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
The trailer shows Keaton terrorizing a frightened looking townsperson who keeps insisting the ghost in front of him is an illusion.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 10 Apr. 2024
In the stand of trees, wounded and frightened Russians were probably crying out.
—Luke Mogelson, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 25 Apr. 2024
The video on Instagram shows the visibly frightened cub looking up at the rescuer and the rope and curling into a tighter ball in the corner.
—Brooke Baitinger, Idaho Statesman, 23 Apr. 2024
Krause, a deputy fire marshal for the state of Oregon, crouched down to get a closer look and saw a frightened puppy hiding.
—Cathy Free, Washington Post, 14 Apr. 2024
Defense spending stayed low across the West not just because of budget pressures, but also because everyone – including the US – was frightened to provoke Russia.
—Luke McGee, CNN, 4 Apr. 2024
Experts have also theorized that whales that become frightened of nearby predators could flee in a panic to shallow waters.
—Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 18 Mar. 2024
Not a frightened superstar who would publicly lie about a gambling addiction to save his skin.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
The trailer shows Keaton terrorizing a frightened looking townsperson who keeps insisting the ghost in front of him is an illusion.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 10 Apr. 2024
In the stand of trees, wounded and frightened Russians were probably crying out.
—Luke Mogelson, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'frightened.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Frightened.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/frightened. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
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