Main Entry: pet·ri·fy

Pronunciation: \ˈpe-trə-ˌfī\

Function: verb

Inflected Form(s): pet·ri·fied; pet·ri·fy·ing

Etymology: Middle French petrifier, from petr- + -ifier -ify

Date: 1594

transitive verb 1 : to convert (organic matter) into stone or a substance of stony hardness by the infiltration of water and the deposition of dissolved mineral matter
2 : to make rigid or inert like stone: a : to make lifeless or inactive : deaden <slogans are apt to petrify a man's thinking — Saturday Review> b : to confound with fear, amazement, or awe <a novel about an airline pilot that will petrify you — Martin Levin> intransitive verb : to become stone or of stony hardness or rigidity