false alarm

noun

|Updated on: 23 Jun 2018

Examples: false alarm in a Sentence

Definition of false alarm

1 : an alarm (such as a fire or burglar alarm) that is set off needlessly

2 : something causing alarm or excitement that proves to be unfounded

See false alarm defined for English-language learners

Examples of false alarm in a Sentence

A false alarm drew firefighters to the school.
The report that the factory would be closing was a false alarm.
He thought he might be having a heart attack, but his chest pains were just a false alarm.

Recent Examples of false alarm from the Web

What made the false alarm all the more frightening is just how plausible the prospect of a nuclear strike has become.

— Daily Intelligencer, "This Is What a Nuclear Bomb Looks Like," 12 June 2018
Administrators called it a false alarm that spiraled out of control.

— alden woods, USA TODAY, "Santa Fe High's disastrous year: From devastating floods to tragic school shooting," 22 May 2018
All advanced safety features are well tuned to avoid annoying false alarms.

— emma jayne williams, star-telegram, "Hyundai’s 2018 Kona small crossover starts at $19,500, offers all-wheel drive | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 19 May 2018
Eccentric but flat characters populate the pages, and false alarms pop up in every chapter with humdrum predictability.

— maureen corrigan, Philly.com, "'The Elizas' by Sara Shepard: No 'Pretty Little Liars,' in fact not much at all," 2 May 2018
The day started just after midnight with an explosion in the town of Schertz near San Antonio and unfolded in a dizzying series of press conferences, conflicting reports from top law enforcement officials and at least one false alarm.

— mark collette, Houston Chronicle, "Police: Austin bombing suspect dead after blowing himself up," 21 Mar. 2018
And this past year, the man who swatted Andrew Finch in Wichita was charged with involuntary manslaughter, giving false alarm, and interfering with law enforcement.

— german lopez, Vox, "David Hogg’s family was swatted. That’s extremely dangerous.," 5 June 2018
Jerry Harper, deputy director of the Phoenix Convention Center, didn't say what triggered the false alarm, but a Phoenix police offer told attendees Saturday night that firefighters were working on a sensor that may been responsible.

— bree burkitt, azcentral, "Phoenix Comic Fest will continue after Saturday's false alarm," 27 May 2018
However, in this latest instance, the police confronted the white caller for the false alarm.

— paula rogo, Essence.com, "Police Officers Defend Black Real Estate Investor After White Woman Calls The Cops For No Reason," 16 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'false alarm.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of false alarm

1578

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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FALSE ALARM Defined for English Language Learners

false alarm

noun

Definition of false alarm for English Language Learners

: an alarm (such as a fire alarm) that is set off when it is not needed
: something that causes people to wrongly believe that something bad or dangerous is going to happen